


The Boy Who Couldn't Hold His Breath Underwater

by nklngrm



Category: Evak - Fandom, SKAM (TV)
Genre: Domestic, Evak - Freeform, Fluff, Happy Ending, ISAKxEVEN - Freeform, M/M, Summer Camp, Summer Camp AU, alternative universe, i can't handle this story and I'm supposed to write it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-29
Updated: 2017-04-09
Packaged: 2018-09-13 03:40:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 67,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9105058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nklngrm/pseuds/nklngrm
Summary: A story about 17-years-old Isak Valtersen who goes to a summer camp, to one where he has been going for a few years now. Little did he know that this year was going to change his whole life as in there's a new, very attractive supervisor who turns Isak's world upside down.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> ENGLISH IS NOT MY FIRST LANGUAGE. Be gentle with me.

"Isak, wake up!"

I blinked my eyes. "Huh?"

"We are here", Jonas, my best friend, said.

I straightened up on my seat and looked out of the window. The car was parked next to the lake. I turned my eyes on Jonas.

"Where are Mahdi and Magnus?" I asked, looking for my two other friends.

"They are already outside", Magnus's mother said from the driver's seat. "You boys should get out too. Your ferry leaves in ten minutes."

"Come, on, Isak", Jonas said and jumped out of the car.

I stretched my arms and got out of the car, stretching my legs and back. I enjoyed the warm weather and sunshine on my face. It felt good after long car drive. I saw Jonas helping Mahdi and Magnus to take our bags out of the car's trunk.

"Jesus Christ, what have you packed here, rocks?" Jonas asked.

"Just a couple of books", Mahdi said.

"It's a summer camp, you don't need books."

"I like to read."

"Summer camp, Mahdi!" Jonas yelled. "Back me up here, Magnus."

"Do you think Vilde Lien is going to be here this year?" Magnus asked, looking at people gathering near the ferry.

I chuckled and took my bag. "I heard she's a supervisor this year."

"Why only eighteen-year-olds can be supervisors?" Magnus asked.

"Because they are basically adults", Jonas said.

I shrugged.

"We can be supervisors next year", I said. I actually looked forward to it. I have been going to this same camp for a few years now and I loved it there. Same people came there every summer and we knew each other well. There were always the couple of new kids but still lot of same faces. And when someone turned eighteen they would always come back as supervisor.

"I'm going to be the best supervisor this camp has ever had", Magnus said proudly.

We laughed and then Magnus's mother came to say goodbye to us. She hugged us all and kissed Magnus's head before letting us walk towards the group near the ferry.

I spotted a few familiar faces from the previous years. I saw Noora's blonde hair and next to her was standing Sana, wearing her hijab which made recognising her easy. The third girl who was talking with them I didn't know. She had short black hair and she was small like a fairy.

"Isak!" Someone yelled as we neared the group. I looked around and spotted Eskild Tryggvason. He was a guy I got to know last year and he was a supervisor this year. He was the coolest lad I knew. He was completely himself and waved his gay pride flag high on the sky. I smiled at him.

"Hello, Eskild."

He walked up to me and nodded at my friends. "Boys." He hugged me. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, excited to be here again. How are you?"

He flashed a big smile. "My first year as a supervisor, I'm buzzing!"

"Good luck", I said.

He walked away to someone he had recognised and we started climbing on the ferry. When it was full there was still lots of people on the shore who had to wait that the ferry comes back to pick them up. It was too small to take us all at once and new campers arrived all the time.

It took ten minutes until the ferry stopped in front of the island. We all got out, carrying our heavy bags with red faces. I loved that island. It was big and beautiful and of course, it was where the world best summer camp was held.

We walked past an old, wooden sign that said, "HOLLY CAMP" and a smile creeped on my face. I was home again.

When we walked on top of the uphill we saw a familiar old, large red building which was the main house. We called it the Great Hall, because there was two big rooms, one which reminded a class room and one where we all eat every day.

We left our bags on the ground in front of he building and got inside, walking to a large room which had several seats placed in neat order. There were always four seats, then a gap and another four seats. Mahdi, Magnus, Jonas and I sat on the four seats near the entrance and soon the room filled with another campers.

We already knew what the seats meant. Whoever sat on the same four seat group as you would be your roommates for the next three weeks. That's why my friends and I made always sure to be first ones to enter the hall and grab the seats. We didn't want to end up in separate rooms.

It took quite a time but finally all the seats were filled. I saw Noora and Sana sitting with that fairy-like girl and some red haired girl who had freckles. I didn't know her either.

I saw Mike and Jake, the mischievous twin brothers who had been going to Holly Camp just as long as I have. They had two boys who I didn't know sitting next to them. I also recognised Markus and Hans. I didn't like them, they were kind of bullies.

The room was filled with laughter and chatting until a tall, tanned man with a large beard and tattooed left arm walked in front of us all. It was Mikael, the owner of the camp and the big boss.

"Hello, fellas", he said with his low voice.

"Hi, Chef", we who had been here before said in unison. He never let us call him Mikael. He was Chef to us and God help if you called him any other name.

"Welcome to Holly Camp!" he said. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Chef. The boss of this place."

Loud cheering which Jonas, Magnus, Mahdi and I joined.

"So, let's go through the rules once again", Chef said. "No drinking, no smoking. No going out during the night. No fighting, no bullying and no leaving others outside. We are all big family here, united. We have to work together otherwise the next three weeks will be like hell.

"Now when that's clear, I would like you to introduce our supervisors. Six out of eight are old campers but we have two new faces this year! Come on out, fellas!"

We turned our heads and saw Eskild walking in first, following by familiar faces. William, Chris, Eva, Vilde (Magnus started smiling) and Ingrid... And then a girl I didn't recognize and finally a tall boy with his hair pushed back and hands in his pockets.

I stared. I knew I was staring but I couldn't stop it. He looked...good. I wasn't blind, I could tell when a guy looks good. But he looked really good. I just couldn't stop staring. It was this instant feeling that you get sometimes. Not love at first sight, God no, but something similar. Interest at first sight, perhaps? The guy's eyes darted to mine as if he knew I was staring. I quickly lowered my gaze down and then glanced at my friends.

They hadn't noticed a thing and I was glad.

When all the supervisors were standing in the front, they introduced themselves.

"I'm Eskild."

"William."

And so on until the new supervisor girl I didn't recognise said her name, "Hi, I'm Sonja and this is my first year here."

I looked at the guy as he opened his mouth.

"I'm Even, also my first year here."

Even. I stared at him again, unable to move my eyes away. He was interesting and I hadn't even talked to him yet. God, I hoped he wouldn't be our supervisor because it would be awkward, me staring at him all the time unable to stop myself.

"As you might already know, the people sitting on the same four seat pack as you will be your roommates for the next three weeks. And now we just have to get every group their own supervisor", Chef said.

There was thirty-two campers and eight supervisors, which meant it was four campers per one supervisor. We had always four guys and four girls as supervisors.

"But before we do that, we are going to do a roll call, just to make sure everyone is here."

Chef started yelling names from his list and every time someone heard their name they raised their hand and yelled, "HERE!". When my name came, I lifted my arm up and said, "You've all been blessed because I'm still here after all these years! You're welcome."

"Every year", Chef sighed, shaking his head. "I suppose I don't even have to ask whether Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus are here."

"No, sir!" my friends yelled and everyone started laughing. I felt how someone was staring at me and I saw that guy, Even, looking at me, grinning slightly. I turned my eyes away before I started smiling too.

When the roll call ended Chef ordered one supervisor to each group.

"We want Vilde!" Mike and Jake yelled.

"Sorry, no girl supervisors for boys", Chef said. "You two know that."

"Bummer."

I was nervous. I hoped we would get anyone but Even because something about him made me feel uneasy. Chief ordered the new supervisor, Sonja, to Noora and Sana's group. Eva, Ingrid and Vilde got groups which members I didn't recognise. Lots of new faces this year. Chris got Markus and Hans and I think it was rather perfect match because Chris was kind of an asshole and Markus and Hans were major assholes.

I sighed in relief when Even got Mike and Jake's group. Now left was only our group and some guy's group that neither of us recognised and only two supervisors left, William and Eskild.

"I hope we get Eskild", Jonas whispered.

I hoped that too.

"Eskild, I think you can handle Valtersen and his friends", Chef said and I yelled YES when I heard him say my last name.

"We got Eskild!" Jonas yelled and we ran to Eskild, making a group hug.

Everyone started laughing at us. I suppose we were kind of the clowns over here but we didn't mind. Someone had to be, right?

"Okay, you have two hours free time to unpack and do whatever until we start the Game", Chef said.

People started to make their way out, slowly but surely. My friends and I were the first ones to get out and we quickly ran to our bags and lifted them up. We waited until Eskild came out and walked to us.

"Ready, boys?" Eskild asked.

We nodded.

"Lead the way, guru", I said.

We walked around the Great Hall and saw eight red cabins shattered here and there in no particular order.

"We are in the cabin seven", Eskild said.

"Same as the last year", Jonas said. "Sweet."

We walked to the cabin that was closest to the sauna and shore were we go to swim from time to time. Eskild opened the door and let us in.

There was two bunk beds and one regular bed which was always Supervisor's bed. Magnus and Mahdi called dibs on the upper berths so me and Jonas took the lower ones. I swung my bag on the bed and opened it. There were three cabinets in the cabin, one at the end of each bunk bed and one right next to the door which was Eskild's. Mahdi was sleeping above me so we shared the cabinet behind our bed and Magnus and Jonas shared the other.

I was the only one unpacking, the others were chatting happily.

"Vilde is so hot", Magnus said. "Do you think we could have something?"

"No", Jonas and Mahdi said.

"Hell no", Eskild said. "She's supervisor, her standards are higher now."

"Isak?" Magnus said, looking at me.

I stuffed my shirts in the cabinet. "I don't think Chef would like it if supervisor started fooling around with us. After all, they are supposed to look after us."

There was a knock on the door frame and as we turned around we saw Even, the new supervisor. He nodded at Eskild and said, "We are gathering a group to play football. You guys interested?" His eyes lingered on me before he turned them back on Eskild and my friends.

"That sounds fun", Eskild said. "We are in, right, guys?"

"Yeah, sure", my friends said.

"I'm out", I said. I couldn't play football to save my life. I was clumsy and would just make a fool out of myself.

"Are you sure?" Eskild asked.

"It's going to be fun", Even said.

I nodded. "I'm sure. I can stand by and watch."

"Whatever floats your boat", Eskild said.

"He's too ashamed do admit that he sucks at sports", Jonas said. Everyone chuckled, including Even and I shot a glare at Jonas who ignored it.

Everyone got out of the cabin and started walking towards the group that was gathered in a field. There was William and some guys from his cabin, Chris with Markus and Hans and Mike and Jake from Even's cabin.

Mahdi and Magnus went to talk with the twins while Jonas and I stayed with Eskild.

"Okay, guys!" Chris yelled. "Let's form two teams."

Everyone started moving around and I moved out of the way. I sat on the grass safe distance away and watched how the two groups formed and they started playing.

All the girls were also standing aside, whispering to each other and watching the boys play. I ripped of the grass around my legs and swirled them in my hands, eyes focused on the game. I saw a few of the guys pulling their shirts of due the fact that it was really hot day.

I turned his eyes away when Even pulled his shirt off and jogged closer to me.

"Are you sure you don't want to play?" he asked. He was standing right in front of me, blocking the sun.

I looked at him and nodded, swallowing.

"Alright", Even said and raised his eyebrows.

My stomach flipped and I lowered my gaze as Even ran back to the field. When I felt like I could look up again I lifted my head up and soon found myself staring at Even. He looked awesome, being without shirt and playing football with a concentrated look on his face. I didn't want to stare but I couldn't help myself.

I took my phone out of my pocket and started scrolling through my Instagram.

When the bell rang, signaling that our two hours free time had ended, I got up and waited for my friends to stop man hugging the other players and come back to me. When they did, Eskild lead us to the Great Hall.

It was time for the Game.


	2. Chapter 2

Why we called it the Game, I never understood. It just kind of...was always there. When I was here my first year, everyone was calling it the Game already and I didn't question it. But in fact, it wasn't a game at all, not exactly. The Game was this Holly Camp's thing where we had different spots around the camp where we go do stuff. It can be arts, swimming, hiking or music spot. The point is to keep us entertained and learn something new. Sometimes the things we do changed, like one year there was this thing where we had to learn how to make a bird house and other stuff out of wood. Next year we didn't have it anymore. You can choose freely where you want to go but you have to go through all the spots.

I wondered what we would have this year and hoped it wouldn't be something like dancing. Hiking was almost every year, as well as arts and swimming, of course.

We walked to the Great Hall, and as we went we passed the building called Workshop where you could find the bathrooms and showers and also different rooms with different equipments, like music room. We got inside the classroom-like room where we had been divided into our cabins. Everyone sat on the chairs and chatted happily with each other. Me and my friends sat close to the front, wondering what would be the spots this year.

Suddenly it became quiet when Chef walked in front of us. He looked around, waiting for everyone to be completely silent.

"Hello, fellas", he began. "It's time for the Game. For those of you who don't know what it is, let me fill you in. During these next three weeks each on everyone of you will go through different spots where there is different kind of activities.

"You can freely choose where to go during the day and you can switch as often as you'd like but there is one rule; you have to go through every spot. You have three weeks time to do that. I know not all of you--", he looked at Magnus and Mahdi, "--like every activities like, for example, the kitchen duty." Again he looked at Magnus and Mahdi who grinned widely. They had last year skipped the kitchen duty overall and got very angry lecture from Chef. "But I do hope you'd still respect the rules and go through every one of them."

People were nodding and someone, probably one of the twins, yelled, "Yes, Sir!" which made Chef glare at them before continuing his speech.

"However", he said. "You will not be alone in this. The supervisors will be walking around in different spots, keeping up the order and watching that you don't do anything stupid."

"Stupid, like what?" I asked.

"Like try to set a bonfire in the middle of hiking and almost burn the whole island down", Chef said, meaning a little incident that happened a few years back.

I smiled innocently and lifted up my hands in surrender. "It was just that one time. I was young and stupid."

Everyone laughed and I grinned widely. Chef shook his head.

"I swear to God, Valtersen..."

"I'm just kidding, don't worry. I'm not setting anything on fire this year", I laughed.

"Anyway", Chef said. "As I was saying, the supervisors will be checking on you on every spot and this year we have something special.

"We have the basic ones; swimming, sauna and rowing. Arts, music and hiking. The new one could be quite surprising for you lot.

"I trust you remember how we have had an empty space in the north side of the island? Well, now there is the stables where you can learn how to ride a horse."

"WHAT?" Everyone yelled. Some were excited and some were horrified. I was horrified and so were my friends judging by the looks on their faces.

"What the hell?" I whispered to them. "Who is going to teach us that?"

"I'm glad you asked, Isak", Chef said loudly, making everyone in the room quiet down. "Our new supervisor, Sonja, will be teaching you how to ride. I expect you all to participate."

Especially the girls were excited. I could already see myself dying when I would fell from the horse's back. I saw Sonja standing up and waving her hand, getting everyone's attention.

"I see you guys aren't as excited as girls but let me tell you, it is easy and if you need a pep talk, just go to Even because he has done it before!"

My eyes narrowed. I leaned closer to Jonas. "Even? Did she say Even?"

"Yeah, why?" Jonas asked.

"No reason."

I found it rather interesting that Even had rode before, not that I would ever admit it out loud. Horses were not my thing.

"Alright, quiet down!" Chef yelled and when he got everyone to quiet down once more, he said, "That is all, you can now start going where ever you like and you can switch spots as many times during the day as you want. The bell will rang around twelve and that's when we eat lunch. Off you go."

We stood up and waited as the crowd slowly made its way outside. I breathed in the warm summer wind and said, "I feel like swimming."

"Hell yes", Jonas agreed.

"I've missed the sauna", Mahdi said.

"Always up for it", Magnus laughed and we ran to our cabin to change our clothes to swimming trunks. I grabbed my towel and then I was the first one to run to the shore. My friends followed right behind me. Mahdi went to turn the sauna on and then we ran straight in to the water. It wasn't cold, it was just the right temperature.

I yelled in excitement and my friends laughed. I dived under water and then came back up, sighing happily.

Jonas splashed water on my face.

"Fucker!" I yelled and soon we were in a massive water fight. Mahdi and Magnus joined us too and they tried to drown each other which was rather fun until there came other campers to swim too and with them came Even.

I stared at him as he sat down on the shore and looked at us all, a small smile on his face. When his gaze met mine I wanted to sink under water and possibly stay there for one eternity.

"Isak!"

I turned to look at Jonas. "What?"

"I asked that do you want to go rowing with us?"

I glanced at Magnus and Mahdi who were already on the shore standing next to the boat and talking with Even.

"You don't have to come with us", I heard Mahdi say. "We have done this countless of times."

"I should be supervising you guys", Even replied.

"Oh, come on", Magnus said.

I looked at Jonas. "No, I think I'll go to sauna."

I didn't want to swim with another campers without my friends. I saw the twins and a bunch of another people running in the water. They waved at Jonas and I as they passed us.

"Okay. We'll come back soon", Jonas said and shrugged. We walked out of the water together.

"Ready, boys?" Jonas asked.

Mahdi and Magnus nodded.

"Jump in, then", Jonas said and they climbed into the boat and Even pushed it off of the shore. I stood next to Even and watched how my friends slowly got further and further away.

"Be careful!" Even yelled at them. "And don't go too far!"

He turned to look at me but didn't say a word, instead he raised his eyebrows at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing", he replied. I stared at him suspiciously and then muttered something about going to sauna and started walking away. I could feel his eyes on me as I walked and I tried to ignore it. He was something else, and I always felt so confused when I was in his presence and it was only the first day.

How will I survive the next three weeks? Another guy shouldn't have such an impact to me. But clearly the universe didn't care what should and shouldn't be so what was I supposed to do expect try to roll with it?

I sat in the sauna where was already one guy who I didn't know.

"Hey", I said. "I'm Isak."

"I'm Joakim", he replied, shaking my hand. "Whose cabinet are you in?"

"Eskild's. How about you?"

"Even."

Shit. I nodded. "Is it your first year here? I don't remember seeing you here before."

"It is", he said.

"How old are you?" I asked just out of curiosity.

"Fifteen. You're seventeen, right?"

I nodded.

"Are you going to come back next year as a supervisor?" he asked.

"Of course."

"You must really like it here."

"I love it", I said. Maybe even more this year because there was Even. Granted, I felt uncomfortable in his presence but I couldn't deny the fact that I quite liked the tingly, weird feeling I got when he talks to me. "I've been going here for a few years now."

"I could tell by the roll call", Joakim laughed.

"Oh, right", I said, chuckling. I might have done a great first impression back then.

We procee dto chat until there came two more guys in the sauna and Joakim left to swim.

"What's up, Isak?" Mike and Jake, the twins, asked.

"Nothing much." I replied, bumping fists with them. I still didn't like them that much but since they seemed to be cool with me this year I refused to complain. Maybe they have changed since last year.

Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus came in just when I was about to leave.

"Shit, sorry, we took longer than what was expected", Mahdi said. "What time is it?"

"I have no idea."

"Wait, I will go ask Vilde", Magnus said and ran off.

"Vilde?" I asked.

"She's here to supervise now, Even left", Jonas explained.

"Oh."

Magnus came back. "It's almost twelve."

"We don't have time for sauna, then", said Mahdi, sounding disappointed. I patted his back and I went quickly to wash myself in the lake from all the sweat and then we took our towels and ran to our cabin, changing our clothes just in time for the bell to rang, telling us that it was lunch time.

We gathered in front of the Great Hall and from there Eskild found us and lead us inside to our table.

It took almost fifteen minutes until everyone was inside, sitting on the tables with their group. Chef walked in front of the table which was filled with food. I hadn't realised how hungry I was until I saw the food.

"Lunch time!" Chef announced. "Personally my favourite part of the day. So, this is how we will proceed. Each table goes one by one get food, starting from left to right. Understood?"

Everyone mumbled yes and then the first campers on the table which was on the left stood up. I realised it was Even's group. They went to get their food and after they had sat back down on their table, Eskild motioned us to get up and go get food.

I sat back down on the table, my plate filled with food. When I looked up I realised I had sat on the place where I could make a direct eye contact with Even.

Shit. What the fucking fuck was this fuckery?

Magnus, Mahdi, Jonas and Eskild came back to the table and we started eating. Magnus kept glancing towards Vilde's table that was all the way on the other side of the dining room.

"God, she's so hot", Magnus groaned.

"Chill, dude", Jonas said. "You will never get her."

"Why not?"

"Because you're too desperate", Eskild said. "But you're right, she is hot."

"You're gay, Eskild", I said.

"So? I can tell when a girl is hot. Speaking of hot people, can we talk about Even's hotness?" Eskild said, sighing.

I sifted uncomfortably.

"Eskild, you do know he's right behind you?" I muttered because judging by how loud Eskild was speaking, Even had probably heard him. I didn't dare to glance at him.

Eskild raised an eyebrow at me, turned around and said, "Hey, Even. Did you know that you're hot?" Eskild turned to glance at us. "Don't you agree, boys?"

"Absolutely", Jonas said.

"Sure thing", Mahdi said.

"Almost as hot as Vilde", Magnus said.

I sunk down on my seat and glanced at Even who was grinning widely and quickly glanced at me, raising his eyebrows. What was that thing and why it made me feel uneasy?

"Thanks, guys", Even said. "Except Isak."

"He's too shy to admit it", Eskild said, shrugging.

I could feel the blush on my face and I muttered something about going back to the cabin and standing up. I took my dishes away and walked to cabin number seven. I slumped down on my bed and groaned. I was still in the same position when the boys came back.

Mahdi, Magnus and Jonas started playing cards since we had one hour free time and Eskild stood by the door, looking at me. "Wanna go by the shore and try to get some colour on your pale ass skin?"

I shrugged. "Sure."

We lied down on the grass by the lake and pulled our shirts off. We were quiet for a while and I was thinking about what Eskild had said earlier. Did he have a crush on Even or why did he speak about how hot Even was? I turned my head and narrowed my eyes in the sunshine so I could see Eskild.

"Eskild?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you...have a thing for Even?" I asked vaguely.

He started laughing and I frowned. Had I said something funny?

"Isak, even though I'm guy, I don't crush on every man I see", Eskild said. "I can appreciate men's beauty without crushing on them."

"Oh, yeah, right. Sorry", I said, feeling like a complete idiot.

"Besides", he continued, "he's dating Sonja."

I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach. The feeling I got was awful and I turned my gaze away and bit my lip.

"Oh", was all I managed to get out.


	3. Chapter 3

had fallen asleep on the grass and I woke up when I felt Eskild shaking me gently.

"Isak...Isak!"

"What?" I groaned, opening my eyes.

"The bell rang. Free time's over", Eskild said. "And your chest is red. You burnt yourself."

"Fuck", I muttered. I sat up and looked down at my chest. It wasn't that bad and I sighed in relief. "Do you have body lotion that I could borrow?"

"Of course", Eskild said and laughed. "I'm a supervisor, remember?"

We walked back to the cabin where Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus were finishing up their game. By the looks of it, Magnus had lost again, or probably every game they had played during the last hour.

"You're such a sore loser", Jonas said.

"You guys cheated", Magnus said, frowning.

"Hi", I said from the door. Eskild was searching through his stuff and I leaned against the door, holding my shirt.

"You didn't put any suncream, did you?" Jonas asked. He was staring at my chest with raised eyebrows. "This happens to you literally every year, when will you learn?"

I shrugged. "Probably never."

"Ha! Found it", Eskild said happily and tossed it to me. "Don't drop it."

I caught it, opened it and put a little bit on my chest, rubbing it everywhere. It felt so good and revealed the aching feeling. I added a little bit more before returning the lotion to Eskild and pulling my shirt back on. I looked at my friends.

"Where next?"

"We want to go hiking", Magnus said, motioning Mahdi and himself. "We thought we could walk to the north side and check out the stables so we at least know what does the place where we're going to die looks like."

I laughed. It was a legit reason, though. I was just as horrified about the riding lessons as my friends. The only one who didn't seem to be bothered was Eskild. But he had probably knew about it before he even came to the island and had had time to get used to the idea of riding a horse. We had heard it only today and what a shock it had been, and still was.

I looked at Jonas. "What would you like to do?"

"Music. Definitely music", Jonas said. "You can release your inner rap beast."

"Hell yeah!" I laughed and we high fived. Music spot was hands down one of our favourites and we almost every year spent most of our time there and then quickly just went through the other spots. Chef had once said we should spent more time in other spots too but we never listened. Maybe this year we would do more other things but I doubted it.

"You guys should get going", Eskild said. "It's only the first day and you're already missing some valuable time to learn and have fun."

"Oh, come on, Eskild", Mahdi groaned and stood up.

"Chill a bit", Magnus echoed.

"Go!"

"Fine, fine...", we said and walked out of the cabin. Magnus and Mahdi waved us goodbye and ran off while Eskild, Jonas and I walked towards the music room. Before we reached it Eskild tapped our shoulders.

"Guys, I have to go to the arts but I will drop by the music group if I have time before dinner."

I nodded. "Who's there now?"

"Probably William, judging by the guitar skills he showed off last year", Eskild replied.

I remembered it well. We had been in the music room fooling around and ignoring our supervisor who had tried to get us do something as a group. Her name had been Anna. She wasn't here this year which was good because she just didn't send me good vibes. She wasn't chill at all. Suddenly William had took a guitar and started playing Paranoid. Everyone had went crazy and Jonas and I had started singing from on top of our lungs. It had been fun, probably the best thing about last year's camp.

We waved goodbye to Eskild and went into the music room. There was already lots of people. I recognised Noora and Sana immediately. They had a third girl with them, that fairy like girl with short dark hair. I still didn't know who she was.

"Hi, girls", I said as we walked past other people who I didn't know. "How are we this year?"

"Isak", Sana greeted.

"We're fine, right, girls?" Noora said, glancing at her friends.

"Totally", the short haired girl said and looked at me, smiling. "I'm Emma."

"Isak" I replied and placed my hand on Jonas's shoulder. "This is Jonas."

She nodded. "Pleasure."

"So, who are all these people?" Jonas asked and we all looked around.

"Those three girls over there are Nora, Rita and Else", Noora said, motioning towards them. "The one with long red hair is Nora, she's in our cabin and Rita and Else are from Vilde's cabin.

"Those guys who are playing with the drums are Joakim and Klaus. They are from Even's cabin and the third guy standing next to them is Viggo. He's from William's cabin."

"How do you know all this?" Jonas asked. Frankly, I was wondering the same thing. Now that she had said his name, I did remember meeting Joakim in the sauna.

"I'm a social butterfly", Noora said, shrugging. "Also our supervisor talks a lot."

"Speaking of that", I said, the curiosity taking the best of me, "how is that new supervisor, Sonja?"

I tried not to feel the knot in my stomach when I said her name and thought about her dating Even. It was none of my business, anyway.

"She's great", Sana said.

"I love her", Emma said.

"Very funny and very pretty", Noora said.

Well, that didn't make me feel better. "Oh."

"Have you been here often? On the island, I mean?" Emma asked, looking at me and biting her lip.

I raised an eyebrow. "A few years. You're new, right?"

"Yes", she said, "but I already love it here." She gave me a smiling look and I shifted uncomfortably. I was about to answer her but William walked in just then.

"What, why isn't there a party going on?" he asked, spreading his arms and looked at me and Jonas. "I expected better from you two."

"We just got here", I defended.

"Well, let's get this party started!"

Everyone cheered and William pointed at Joakim and Klaus who were by the drums. "Give me some beat!"

Joakim started playing and Klaus started clapping his hands to the rhythm. William grabbed a guitar and started playing. I looked around and saw Viggo hesitating near the bass guitar. I yelled, "Go for it!" and he looked at me, grinned and took it. He started playing to the beat.

The sound was really contagious.

"Isak, your turn!" William yelled. By now everyone was clapping after Klaus and looking at me, clearly ready for me to start rapping.

I laughed and joined in, spitting words out as they came to my mind. It was a talent, really. I had no idea where all the words came but they just did. It all ended when I finally started laughing and everyone stopped playing and started clapping. Emma whistled and smiled brightly, staring at me.

Oh, no. Maybe she was interested? Shit.

"Okay, let's stop fooling around", William said and chuckled. "While that was fun, Chef has actually given some orders to us this year."

Some of us groaned and by some I mean Jonas and I. William grinned at us.

"Anyway", he continued. "He wants us to prepare a show for the last day of the camp when your parents come here. We have it all planned and everyone has certain places in this. We have already ordered some of the campers what they need to do and now is your turn.

"Joakim, we want you to play the drums. Jonas, I know you can sing so you're in a singing team with lots of other people and don't even try to slither out of this one.

"Since we need two to play bass guitars and we already have one, would you, Viggo like to be the other one? You clearly can play."

Viggo nodded.

"Good", William said and then looked at Noora. "I know you can play a guitar, Noora."

"Oh, no", she said, shaking her head. "I'm not playing."

"Please?" William pleaded. "We need you to play, I can't do it alone."

"Noora! Noora! Noora!" Jonas and I started chanting and everyone joined us, making Noora blush and finally groan that yes, she would play.

"Great!" William said, smiling widely. "Most of the places are now filled. There's people who clap to the beat and those who sing. If I haven't told you what to do, you can either ask me or assume that you'll be singing, unless if you have some other talent I should know about."

"Am I singing?" I asked, confused by everything.

William grinned. "I'm glad you asked, Isak."

I had a bad feeling about this.

"Chef wants us to sing The Wanted's I'm Glad You Came and he wants to include there a part where you're rapping about these three weeks."

I stared at him with my mouth hanging open. He was kidding, right? Chef didn't expect me to rap in front of the whole camp and our parents, did he?

"Wait, what?" I asked.

"That's amazing!"

"You should totally do it!"

"You're going to ace it!"

"You go, Isak!"

"It's going to sound so amazing!"

I felt like I was drowning when everyone around me started babbling. I couldn't get over the fact that they wanted me to rap in front of everyone. Also the song choice was fucking wacko, why would Chef want us to sing something shit like that?

"Of course", William said, "every single one of the campers here must sacrifice the free hour after lunch so we can train together. We will train whenever you guys are here in the music spot but also together every day, starting tomorrow."

"He didn't tell us about this when we came here", Jonas said.

"I know", William said and shrugged, turning his eyes on me. "So, Isak. Are you in?"

Did I have a choice? Everyone would be disappointed at me if I refused. I sighed.

"I guess?"

A round of applause came and I sunk down on the chair behind me. Jonas sat next to me and patted my shoulder.

"There, there."

"Not helping", I hissed through my teeth.

"What's the big deal? You'll be fine."

"I hope so."

Then William proceed to tell us that we would practice now, leaving out only my rap part since I still got no lyrics or anything and it was only just the first day. Noora took a guitar, Viggo took the bass guitar and Joakim sat behind the drums. A few of the girls went to talk with William and then William handed out the sheet musics and everyone started to play. At first it sounded horrible but the more they played it, the better it started sounding. The rest of us who weren't playing any instruments started singing along. I sang too since I couldn't really do my rap part.

William put down his guitar while others proceed to play. He came up to me and said, "You don't look excited."

"I am excited", I said, even though I wasn't so sure about that. "Who are playing the instruments?"

"Joakim on the drums, me and Noora on the guitars, Viggo and Kasper on the bass guitars, Vera on piano and I don't know if I'm forgetting something but yeah, now all the instruments are filled. The rest of the campers are singing. It's going to sound so cool!"

"What about other supervisors?" I asked.

"They are singing too", William said. "We were thinking about putting your rap part in the middle of the song."

"Alright", I said simply. I had nothing to complain, they were going to do what they wanted to do, whether I approved it or not. And I didn't have heart to decline. I didn't want to be the one to ruin the whole thing.

William patted my back and went back to playing his guitar. I sang along with everybody and tried to ignore Emma's glances. She was giving them to me awfully lot and I didn't feel comfortable.

Not that she wasn't pretty, she was, but I wasn't looking for anything here. I just wanted to enjoy these three weeks. Maybe I could hookup with her a bit but I...I just didn't feel like she was that interesting. I didn't get those vibes around her.

At some point a few of us left to another point but some of us, like Jonas and I, stayed in the music spot. Noora, Sana and Emma left too, not before saying goodbye to us. They were going to swim.

When Joakim left, we stopped practising our song and instead started just jamming. William gave us the beat and we would do whatever came up to our minds.

That's what we continued to do for the next couple of hours. I tried to learn how to play guitar and Jonas practiced the drums. Finallyl the bell rang at five and it was time for dinner.

"I'm starving", Jonas groaned, standing up and walking towards the door. I followed him.

"Me too."

We went in front of the Great Hall and soon saw Magnus and Mahdi walking towards us with Eskild. We got into the dining room and sat on our table and waited for everyone to come in.

I saw Even walking in the room and he was last to arrive. Even walked past me and his arm touched me as he went and I stiffed, my heart missing a beat. I relaxed once I saw him sit down on his table.

We fetched our foods in the same order as last time. I was so hungry it didn't take that long to finish my food and I was done before anyone else on my table.

"Hi, guys."

My eyes widened and I lifted my gaze up, seeing Even standing next to our table.

"Hi, Even", Eskild said. "What's up?"

"I was wondering where exactly is that kiosk Chef was talking about?"

We had a kiosk in the island were this chubby, lovable woman called Mrs. Downhill sold all kinds of candies and lemonade and chips and what you could possibly imagine. If you graved for something, you could probably find it there. She was there whenever she wanted, usually in the evening because everyone wanted some snacks then.

"Behind the Great Hall goes a path. Walk there and then there comes a crossroads, other leads to the stables and other to the kiosk and—Wait, why don't Isak come to show you? He's already done eating, anyway."

My mouth dropped open and I stared at Eskild in disbelief. Had he seriously just said that? I saw Even turning to look at me with raised eyebrows and I realised I had no valid reason why to say no.

Goddamn it. "Fine."

I got up and put away my dishes before walking out with Even following behind me. I lead him to the path and we walked in silence, our arms occasionally brushing against each other and I noticed it every single time.

Suddenly he nudged my shoulder and when I turned to look I saw him offering me a cigarette.

Now, I'm not much of a smoker, only when I'm partying with Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus but I didn't dare to say no so I took the cigarette and raised an eyebrow.

"You do know smoking is against the rules here?" I said.

"What they don't know won't harm them", he replied, shrugging and lit his cigarette, handing the lighter to me. I lit my cigarette and handed the lighter back to him and then we walked in silence once more.

To him it might seem comfortable but to me it felt awkward and heavy, like I should be saying something, anything, but I just couldn't get a word out of me. Why was he walking so close to me, anyway?

We threw away our cigarettes before we reached the kiosk and I waited outside as Even went in. I tried to come with something to talk about with him but my brain wouldn't work with me. He came back out, stuffing a bag of candy in his jean jacket's pocket.

"Shall we?" he asked.

I nodded and we started walking back. "How did you find about this camp?"

I was very proud of myself for asking something actually legit.

"I saw a poster when I moved in the city and thought 'why the hell not?', you know?" he looked at me and I nodded. "I think it was worth it."

"You like it here?" I asked.

He looked at me and was silent for longer than what was comfortable to me before saying, "Yeah."

We arrived back at the Great Hall and he waved his hand, walking away and I went back to the cabin number seven, finding Jonas, Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild there.

"Oh, Isak, just in time!" Eskild said. "There's a movie starting soon in the Great Hall. Want to go watch it? People are still going to buy snacks and everything but the movie will start in fifteen or so."

"What movie?" I asked.

"Grown Ups", Jonas said, wrinkling his nose and I chuckled.

"That Adam Sandler movie?"

Jonas nodded.

"I think I'll pass", I said.

"So it leaves just me and Mahdi and Magnus", Eskild said. "Fine. Let's go, boys!"

We waved at them and they left. Jonas and I fell to our beds, sighing deeply.

"What a first day", Jonas said.

I thought about it and yeah. "You can say that again."


	4. Chapter 4

 "Wakey, wakey!"

I groaned and rolled on my back. "No."

"Yes", Eskild said. "It's eight o'clock, time to get up!"

"No!" Jonas, Mahdi, Magnus and I yelled.

Worst part about this summer camp was that we had to get up eight in the morning. It was only the second day and I was already done with waking up so early. I wasn't a morning person by any means. In fact, I was barely a person during the mornings.

"Seriously, guys, you have to wake up", Eskild said.

I cracked one eye open and looked at him. He was already fully dressed and was standing in the middle of the cabin, looking at all of us, frowning.

"Chill, dad", I said and yawned. He shot a glare at me and I sat up, lifting up my hands. "Alright, alright, I'm up."

"You have one hour to get ready, breakfast is at nine."

"Noted."

He left the cabin and I got out of the bed, looking at Jonas who was rubbing his eyes and yawning.

"I hate these mornings", Jonas mumbled.

"Me too", I said.

"Do we have to go the shower?" Mahdi mumbled. "I don't feel like going."

"I don't know about you but I'm going", I said and grabbed my towel. "Anyone else?"

We had two shower rooms, one for the girls and for for the guys. There we had the toilets and the showers. Of course, you had to walk to the Great Hall but it was fine. I was used to it.

"I'm coming", Magnus mumbled.

"Me too just give a second", Jonas said.

"I will stay and sleep until nine", Mahdi said and sunk back down on his bed.

I searched my toothbrush while Jonas tried to get himself out of the bed. It took fifteen minutes before we finally got out of the cabin and into the Great Hall. We showered quickly, talking about what spot we should go first. There was eight showers so there was a line of guys waiting for their turn by the time we got out of the showers. We walked back to the cabin and changed clothes. It was almost nine when we woke up Mahdi and went back to the Great Hall.

Eskild was already sitting at our table and most of the campers were in the dining room. We sat down and Mahdi pressed his head against his hands, yawning.

"I'm so not awake yet", he mumbled.

I chuckled and patted his back. "There, there."

We ate in silence since no one was in the mood to talk. But as the time passed everyone started to feel slightly better and more awake. And by the time we had finished our breakfast and went to the first spot, we were already chatting happily and joking around.

We decided together to go to arts spot since it felt like easiest choice since we didn't feel like swimming or singing or anything else, it was still a little bit too early. Granted, we had went to swimming yesterday but it was totally different thing, we hadn't had the chance to swim in months so of course we wanted to do it right away.

We entered the art room and my eyes immediately spotted Even sitting there, sketching something. I looked at him. He look good. He was biting his lip due the fact that he was concentrating so hard. He hadn't even noticed us walking in, nor did he notice when a few of girls who I didn't know walked in and glanced at him and giggled. I rolled my eyes. Two more guys walked in and then everyone just sat around, waiting.

"Even?" Jonas said. "Even!"

He dropped his pencil. "Shit—What?"

"Hi", Jonas said. "Are you here to tell us what we should do?"

He straightened and placed down his notebook and nodded. "Yeah." He looked around. "Hi guys. So, as some of you might now, we start an art project now and the goal is to finish it within these three weeks. If you finish it quickly, you can do other stuff, but the main goal is to spent a lot of time doing your best with this art project. Everyone following?"

We nodded and he smiled. I turned my eyes down because I felt like if I would have kept looking at him I would start smiling too like an idiot.

"This time you should paint something that you love the most about the summer. It could be about this camp or summer just generally", he said.

"Can I paint you?" one of the girls asked and her friends giggled. I rolled my eyes again.

Even laughed. "If I'm the best part of your summer then sure, go for it."

"What if I don't know what I like the most?" the other one of the two guys asked.

"You'll get it eventually", Even said. "And that's why I'm here; to help you. So feel free to ask whatever comes up your mind."

We all got frames with canvas and some people started sketching right away but I just stared at it, completely lost. I couldn't draw to save my life but I still liked to do it. But now my mind was empty. What did I liked the most about summer? About this camp? Nothing, there was nothing in my mind. I glanced on my right and saw Jonas sketching something unrecognisable. On my left Mahdi and Magnus were chatting with each other and drawing something. I felt like I was the only one with no ideas.

"Troubles?"

I jumped a little when I heard Even's voice right behind me. He was standing close, raising his eyebrows.

"Kind of."

"Let's see...", he thought for a moment. "What is the most beautiful thing you have seen here?"

I wanted to say that he concentrating on drawing but I swallowed the words and instead said the only thing I could come up, "Last night's sunset. It looked like the lake was on fire."

Even nodded. "And what do you like to do here the most?"

"I don't know", I replied, avoiding his eyes. It was just too distracting and I felt uncomfortable with him standing so close. It made my heart bump faster.

"How about music?" he asked. "I heard you're quite a rapper."

I blushed and glanced at him. "Maybe."

He smiled. "There you have it. Paint a sunset and add something related to music."

"Like what?"

"Like...like someone playing a guitar by the shore."

That wasn't such a bad idea when you thought about it. I looked at him and gave him a small smile, feeling somewhat shy. I felt like I was staring at him too much so I turned my eyes away and tried to look anywhere but him.

"Alright", I said. "Thanks."

He just grinned at me and moved on. He stopped behind Magnus and stared at his sketch for quite a while before asking, "What on earth is that?"

"It's Vilde."

I started laughing and quickly covered my mouth when Even and Magnus turned to look at me.

"Sorry", I said. "Remembered something funny."

Even raised an eyebrow at me before patting Magnus's shoulder. "Keep up the good work."

I started sketching, trying to do my best. I wasn't even close to finish when Magnus and Mahdi put down their pencils and came up to me.

"We are going to swim real quick before the lunch", Mahdi said. "Do you want to come?"

I thought about it for a moment but decided against it. I felt inspired and wanted to continue drawing, even though my sketch looked like shit.

"No thanks", I said. "I think I'll stay."

"Me too", Jonas said.

Mahdi and Magnus nodded and left. I glanced at their works and I still had no idea what Mahdi's drawing was supposed to be but whatever. I walked over to Jonas and leaned against his shoulder.

"Whatcha doing?"

"You have eyes, don't you?" Jonas asked.

I looked at his sketch and coughed. "Well yes, but you're a shit. What is it?"

Jonas sighed. "It's supposed to be me in a boat, playing guitar."

"Ohh!" I nodded. "I can totally see it now."

"Fuck off."

I laughed and went back to my drawing. I looked around, stretching my arms. The girls were doing their works intensively while the two boys seemed to have lots of fun and they were joking around. Even was sketching too. I wondered what his painting would be. I bet better than mine at least.

"So, Isak", Jonas said. "You thinking about that girl, Emma?"

No, I'm thinking about Even. "Sure, whatever."

"She seemed to be pretty into you."

"I noticed", I said dryly. "What about you, still thinking about Eva?"

Eva was a supervisor this year. She and Jonas had had a thing last year which had ended along with summer. Jonas had been quite down after that, he really liked her. As his best friend I tried my best to cheer him up but there's only so much you can do.

"I don't know. Sometimes", Jonas said and shrugged. "We are cool. She and me. We are cool now."

I nodded. "That's...cool."

"Hey!"

I looked to my left and saw the two guys standing there, staring at me with wide grins on their faces. They looked young.

"Hi?"

"You're Isak, right?" The blond one with long hair asked. "I'm Hans."

"I'm Arnold", the short and dark haired boy said. "You're the guy who has killer rapping skills, right?"

I wanted to laugh but managed to stifle it down. "Yeah, I suppose so."

"That's so wicked, man!" Hans said. "You have a solo in the performance and everything!"

I didn't answer.

"That's so cool, man", Arnold said.

"What are you guys doing?" Jonas asked. "Singing?"

"Oh, no, no, no", Hans laughed. "We can't sing to save our lives. We are clapping to the beat."

"Is this your first year here?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.

They nodded.

"How old are you guys?"

"Fourteen."

I nodded. "Well, I hope you have lots of fun here."

"We will", they grinned and somehow I just knew they would be this year's troublemakers. They walked away and then the bell rang. I was happy because my hand was getting tired of drawing and also because I was hungry.

We walked to the Great Hall and got in the dining room. We sat down by the table and greeted Eskild, Magnus and Mahdi. They were deep in conversation and only nodded at us.

We were eating when suddenly someone popped next to our table. I looked up and saw Vilde. I glanced at Magnus who was immediately ruffling his hair and smiling. I shook my head and tried not to smile.

"Hi guys, I just wanted to remind you that the practice is after the lunch during the free hour", Vilde said, sounding so excited.

I saw Even looking at me, then glancing at Vilde and rolling his eyes. I almost chuckled but managed to stop myself right on time.

"We remember", I said to her. "Don't worry."

"Nice that you came to remind us, though", Magnus added and I shared a knowing look with other lads. Magnus was so whipped.

"Yeah, sure", Vilde said and smiled. Then she moved on to the other tables to remind them about the practice.

"Could you be more obvious?" Eskild sighed, looking at Magnus.

We all laughed while Magnus pouted. "What?"

"Jeez, dude", I said. "Everyone can see how whipped you are. You need to act more cool."

Sure, I should act more cool towards Even but I didn't even know what was going on. He sort of intimidated me. Maybe I should just ignore him all together.

After we were done eating we put our dishes away and went to the music room with the rest of the campers. William lead the practice and it was a mess. Not everyone knew what was rhythm and someone was always messing up. Singing went well, most of the time. I was sitting on the side, laughing at them on my own when Even came sit next to me. Too close, if I may add.

"Isak! This is the part where your rap solo will come!" William yelled and I nodded at him, listening the music. It wasn't long, so I didn't have to embarrass myself for that long time which was good. Also it made coming up with lyrics so much more easier.

"And to that I should come up with lyrics", I sighed out loud, almost forgetting that Even was sitting right next to me, his arm touching mine.

"You'll do great, kiddo", he said, patting my shoulder.

My heart missed a beat. "Don't call me a kiddo."

"Sure, Isak", he said and grinned at me.

"Why aren't you singing with them?" I asked curiously.

Even shrugged. "They are shit at the moment, I will wait until they are better so I don't have to lose my nerves when someone messes up every other second."

I laughed. "I see your point."

Even looked at me, raised his eyebrows and left. I was confused and felt warm. Why did he always lift his eyebrows. It was...distracting.

The free hour soon ended and everyone left the music room. Jonas came up to me.

"Mahdi and Magnus are going to the kitchen to help with dinner so I was wondering it you'd like to go rowing?"

"Sure", I replied and got up. We walked to the lake and got into the boat. We rowed past the swimmers and started rowing around the island. Of course, the island was waaay to big for us to row all the way around it but we rowed as far as we could and then turned back.

"Jonas?" I asked when we stopped to admire our surroundings. "I feel like jumping in the water."

"Don't do it", Jonas said. "You'll never get bak into the boat."

"Bummer. It could've been fun."

"Maybe next time."

We were now close to the swimmers and I saw Even swimming with them, he was laughing and splashing water on someone's face.

"Hey, Jonas", I said, leaning my elbows against my legs and looking at him. "How did you know that you liked Eva? I mean...how do you know if you like someone?"

"What kind of question is that? You've liked someone too."

"yeah but when you're not sure. How do you know it?"

Jonas was silent for a moment. "You can't take your eyes off of them. They are constantly on your mind. You feel pain in your stomach but it's a good kind of pain. Like butterflies and shit. You just...know."

I bit my lip and nodded. I didn't know whether his words were helpful or not because now I felt even more confused. I glanced at Even one more time before clapping my hands together.

"Alright!" I said. "Let's go hiking."

Hiking was fun because around the woods in the island there was all kinds of different things that made hiking so much more interesting. Like there was this one big, wide hole on the ground and you had to get over it by swinging with a rope. It made you feel like Tarzan and it was so fun.

"Hell yeah!" Jonas said and started rowing to the shore.

"Guys, did you have fun?" Even yelled at us, wiping water off of his face.

Damn, he was beautiful.

"Yeah", Jonas called back while I was just dumbly staring.

Why am I like this?


	5. Chapter 5

Jonas and I were just getting back from our hiking trip when we stumbled onto Mahdi and Magnus. They were coming from the music room and they were laughing and pushing each other. I raised an eyebrow at them and crossed my arms.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

Mahdi grinned. "I tried to learn how to play two-row accordion and Magnus tried to play bagpipes."

"And how did that go?" Jonas asked.

"We failed completely", Magnus laughed. "Everyone was laughing at us like there's no tomorrow."

Well, I wasn't surprised. Magnus and Mahdi were as musical as slugs. They had no idea how to play any of the instruments we had in this world and we always got a good laugh when they tried to sing along to some random songs.

Our laughing was stopped when we saw Eskild and Even walking towards us. I snapped my mouth shut and looked down before quickly glancing at Even. Why do I have to be so shy around him? Damn it. It's not a habit of mine. Usually I was a very confident person around people, especially girls. I always knew what to say and do and I had no problem flirting shamelessly with literally anyone. I'm really kind of a flirty person but now, for some reason, I barely knew how to stand near Even. It's like I had lost every single bit of my confidence when he stepped into my life. And it was only a day two in this camp. How was I supposed to live with him this island for three weeks if he keeps having this kind of effect on me?

Jesus Christ.

"Guys, you should go to the next spot and not stand here", Eskild said. "what were you laughing at, anyway?"

"Mahdi and Magnus were in the music spot making fools out of themselves", Jonas said and grinned. "I would like to have seen it."

"Me too", Eskild said.

I ruffled my hair and pushed the curls out of my face. Was it just me or was it suddenly got really hot in here? Apparently it wasn't just me because soon Mahdi said that he wanted to go swimming.

"I'm coming with you", Jonas said.

"Me too", Magnus agreed.

"Isak?" Jonas asked.

I shook my head. "I'll pass."

"I'm coming too", Eskild said. They left just like that and we stood there with Even, staring around and glancing at each other. Why was it like this? It was like...I don't even have words to describe it.

"Want to come to the stables with me?" Even then said suddenly.

I hesitated, already seeing how I would fall and die and the horse would eat my corpse. Apparently he saw the horror in my eyes because he laughed and motioned me to follow him.

"Come on, you don't have to ride on your first time", he said. I sighed and what the hell? Why not. I followed him and we walked to the stables. There was a punch of girls gathered around Sonja and they had a brown and big horse with them. For a moment I was afraid we would go to Sonja and be with her, listening her talk but I almost sighed in relief when Even walked past Sonja and we went over the fence on the field. It's not that I didn't like Sonja but I didn't necessarily want to hang out with her. I may or may not want to spend time alone with Even. I was torn between stay the fuck away from me and please hang out with me. I didn't really know what to do with Even so I basically rolled with the flow and hoped for the best. After all, what was the worst thing that could happen?

He walked up to a horse and patted it's back. The horse didn't seem to mind, it just kept eating.

I kept my distance, eyeing it suspiciously.

"This is Stormy", Even said. "He's an English Thoroughbred."

My eyes widened. "He's a what?"

Even laughed. "It's his breed. That brown horse who was with Sonja and the girls is Cinnamon, a New Forest."

"New Forest is a breed?"

He nodded.

"Oh. You know a lot about horses."

He shrugged. "I guess. Come, pet him."

"I would rather just look—Oh, okay."

Even had plunged forward and pulled me closer by the hand. I stood next to the horse, scared out of my mind. I lifted my hand up slowly and placed it on the horse's side. It was warm and soft. I moved my hand slowly and breathed out in relief when the horse didn't turn around and eat me or kick me or just generally try to kill me because I was pretty sure horses killed people a lot. Of course, I don't know the accuracy of that but it seemed like a legit reasoning. Kind of. What do I know, anyway? Even hang around horses and was still alive, right?

"See? It's not that bad."

I chuckled. "Are all horses this...calm?"

"Well, Rascal isn't, he's a small devil pony but other horses are all nice and calm."

I nodded. I didn't understand what he was talking about but it didn't matter. What mattered was that I was still alive.

"Wait here."

I frowned. "Where are you going? You can't leave me alone with him!"

"Just stay calm and pet him. If he moves don't panic or he'll get scared."

"He will get scared? What about me?" I was already scared shitless, god damn it.

"You'll be fine", he said, waving his arm dismissively. He walked off and I turned to look at the horse. It shook his head and continued eating, taking one step forward. I held my breath but when he didn't move again I breathed normally. I eyed his head and yep, going to stay away from that and those possibly fatal teeth. Before I even knew it, Even was back, holding a brush and an apple. He placed the brush on the ground and handed me the apple.

"What, you want me to feed it?" I asked in horror. "He will eat my whole hand!"

"No he won't", Even laughed. "Come on, place it on your palm, keep your fingers straight and just give it to him."

I stood frozen in place when the horse turned around and reached his head towards me, wanting the apple. I closed my eyes and extended my hand. I felt a soft touch and then the apple was gone and the horse was eating it. Was it really that easy?

I let out a sigh of relief and turned my eyes on Even. "I did it."

Even smiled at me and picked up the brush. "Now you're gonna brush him."

I felt much more confident than before so I nodded. "Alright. How am I supposed to do that?"

I hated how clueless I was. I didn't like not knowing how to do stuff. I always wanted to know everything about...well, everything. I wanted to learn all the languages in the world, play all the instrument, do all the sports (even though I sucked at them) and know every single song by heart. Even the bad ones. I wanted to learn everything. I wanted to know everything. Maybe I was a bit too ambitious.

"Like this." He brushed the horse for a moment and then handed me the brush. I stepped closer Stormy and brushed him but Even laughed.

"What?"

"Not like that." He placed his hand on top of mine and guided my hand. My heart missed a beat and I felt how I blushed. "Like this. Along side with his fur."

"Okay, I think I got it", I said a little bit out of breath, hoping he would take his hand away. But he didn't, instead he looked at me in silence and I couldn't help but stare back.

"Hi, Isak!"

Even jumped back and we both turned to look at Emma.

"Emma."

"Are you here to ride too?" Emma asked, smiling.

I shook my head. "Not yet."

"Cool, okay. I was wondering would you like to go to swim with me sometime?"

From the corner of my eye I could swear I saw Even frowning at Emma for a second.

"Uh..." shit, I had to say something. "Sure, whatever."

"Great, okay", she kind of blushed and smiled at me. "Well, I better get back. See you around!"

"Bye."

I stared after her, frowning. That was so random I could barely understand what just happened.

"I thought you would come swim with me", Even said, raising an eyebrow at me. He was clearly mocking me. I slapped his arm with the brush.

"Oi, shut up."

He laughed and I rolled my eyes, smiling. I looked at Stormy. It was a nice horse, very calm and gentle. I quite liked him and even though I was first scared, I was rather proud of myself for managing to come this far. Maybe I will survive from riding. Although I would rather ride with someone a bit smaller than Stormy.

"What time is it?" I asked.

Even shrugged. "Close to four."

"I think I should go", I said. I didn't know if I really wanted to, I liked hanging out with Even, even if it made me feel uneasy at times. But I really thought I should go find my friends before we would have to go to the dinner.

"Oh, alright", Even said, sounding...disappointed? No, it couldn't be.

"I guess I will...see you around?"

"Obviously", he grinned. "Bye, Isak."

Was it weird that I liked how my name sounded coming out of his mouth? Probably. I waved at him and walked away. I made my way through the path back to the camp and past the Great Hall. I figured my friends were still swimming so I quickly went to our cabin, checked my phone for messages and then went to the shore.

I stared the swimmers and finally spotted my friends.

"Guys!" I yelled and they turned to look at me.

"Isak, join us!"

"It's four o'clock!" I yelled back. "We should go get ready!"

"Aw, you just had to come kill the fun", Jonas said and I rolled my eyes. I waited more or less patiently while they got out of the water and fetched their towels. They wrapped them around themselves and then we walked back to our cabin.

I lied in my bed, scrolling through Instagram while Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus changed to their clothes. I don't understand how it took them so long but it did and I had already scrolled through the Facebook and Instagram and even Twitter before they finally said that they are ready.

We went to the Great Hall and waited that Even's table fetched their food before it was our turn.

We sat down to eat and discuss about tonight's movie.

"What is it?" Magnus asked.

"You'll have to come and see", Eskild said vaguely.

"Why won't you tell us?" I asked, narrowing my eyes. "Is it that bad?"

"...No."

"You hesitated!" I said. "It is that bad!"

"It's Easy A", Even called from his table and grinned at me. Eskild groaned.

Mahdi, Magnus, Jonas and I made disgusted faces. Sure, one of the world's hottest women was on the lead role but Jesus Christ I wasn't up for it, that movie wasn't my cup of tea.

"I'm not going to watch that", Magnus announced.

"Me neither", the rest of us agreed.

"Come on, guys", Eskild said. "It's not that bad."

Mahdi scoffed. "The only good thing about that movie is the scene where Emma Stone is in the shower."

"Preach!" Jonas yelled.

I laughed at them and Eskild rolled his eyes.

I took my dishes and got up. "Come on, guys, let's go to the kiosk. I need me some chocolate."

We walked out of the dining hall and to the path leading to the kiosk. Mahdi and Magnus were joking around, pushing each other while me and Jonas walked in the front.

"Where were you when we were swimming?" Jonas asked suddenly.

I was caught off guard. "I, uh—I was at the stables." Jonas eyes widened and I hurried to add, "No, no! I didn't ride. I just...hang out there and brushed this one horse, Stormy."

"Was Sonja nice?"

"I...was actually with Even."

"Oh." Jonas glanced at me. "He seems like a decent lad."

I smiled. "He's chill."


	6. Chapter 6

We walked straight back to our cabin from the kiosk and sat on the floor, dropping all our candy in the middle of our circle. There was lots of chocolate, mainly because of me. We had all bought our own candy but we always ended up sharing everything so that's why we placed them all on the ground so everyone could eat whatever they fancied.

"Should we play cards?" Jonas asked, his mouth full of chocolate.

Magnus shook his head. "No."

"Sore loser", I said under my breath and we all, except Magnus, started laughing. "Sorry, Magnus."

"I'm a sore loser? What about that time when Jonas got the girl you were trying to hit on? Who was the sore loser then?"

I raised my eyebrows. "It was almost two years ago. And I wasn't that interested, anyway."

Jonas laughed. "You're still mad about that."

Okay, maybe I was but just a little bit. I usually got what I wanted and I was the smoothest little fucker out there but somehow the girl ended up together with Jonas instead of me. I had hated it. But to be honest I couldn't even remember what she looked like anymore.

"All water under the bridge", I said, shrugging. "Remember when Mahdi chatted with some random girl on the internet and then it was revealed that she was actually he?"

Jonas, Magnus and I laughed. Mahdi glared at us.

"It's not funny", he said.

"Oh, it is funny, okay!" Jonas laughed, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

"I can't breath", Magnus said, holding his stomach. "Those were the times, man!"

Mahdi clapped his hands. "Alright, guys. What about last year when Magnus tried to kiss Vilde out of the blue and she slapped him in the face?"

"That was priceless!" I said.

"To be honest nothing can top that", Jonas said and patted Magnus's back. "You tried your best, buddy."

Magnus shivered. "I can still feel the burn when she slapped my cheek."

"Maybe she will warm up to you this year", I suggested. I didn't think it was completely impossible, just highly unlikely. Vilde had made it pretty clear that she wasn't interested but who knows? Maybe Magnus can charm his way in.

"Yeah, maybe", Jonas and Mahdi agreed, sounding lot more confident than what I had.

"Thanks, guys", Magnus said.

There was a knock on our door and then Vilde stepped in. We all glanced at each other. Had she heard us? What was she doing here anyway? Magnus looked really scared and pale.

"Hi, guys", Vilde said. "We who aren't watching the movie are playing Truth or Dare in the music room. Wanna join?"

I hesitated. It was never a good idea to play Truth or Dare but since my friends immediately agreed to go, I couldn't be a pussy and say no.

"Sounds fun", I lied.

We got up and followed Vilde outside and to the music room. On the way I grabbed Jonas's hand and whisper yelled at him, "If you dare me to strip naked again I'm going to kill you."

Jonas laughed. "What are the changes that when I spin the bottle, it will land on you again?"

"Small, or non-existent I hope."

We stepped inside the music room which was filled with a few people already. Emma, Noora, Sana, Vilde, Eva, the red haired girl Noora was talking about...I thought her name was Nora but I wasn't sure, Joakim, Eskild and...shit, Even. Great. That was just great.

How was I supposed to play Truth or Dare with Even? I didn't want him to know embarrassing facts about me or see me doing some stupid dare. Although I did wanna know facts about him, I just didn't want him to hear things of me that I couldn't filter.

"Okay, everyone", Vilde said. "Let's mix you up a little bit. When I say go, you start walking aimlessly among each other and when I say stop, you stop and form a circle and sit next to whoever ends up next to you. Understood?"

We all mumbled yes and then she yelled go. I started walking, dodging people and smiling at the ones I knew which was basically everyone since I had met Joakim before. The only one who I didn't really know was that red haired girl (Nora?). I bumped shoulders with Magnus as he walked past me and grinned.

Suddenly Vilde yelled loudly stop and we all stopped. I felt someone pressing close to my side and when I looked up I saw Even standing there, smiling smugly. Had he done it on purpose? Jesus, I didn't know what to hope.

We formed a circle and sat down on the ground. Vilde placed a bottle in the middle and glanced us all.

"You all know how to play this, right?"

"Sure."

"Yeah."

"Of course."

"Stupid question, Vilde."

I felt Even's arm pressed against mine and I was conscious about it every second, feeling tingly. I looked around and saw Magnus sitting next to Emma right in front of me. He flashed me an excited grin and then Vilde rolled the bottle.

It landed on Noora.

"Truth or dare?" Vilde asked.

"Truth", Noora said.

Vilde grinned. "I was hoping you would say that."

"Shit", Noora said.

"Do you like William? And remember, you can't lie."

I gulped. The direction where the questions were going didn't seem that promising. I glanced at Sana who was sitting on the other side of me. Her arm wasn't pressed on my side. Why on earth was Even sitting so close? I took a deep breath and tried to calm down, focus on the game.

"Why would you ask something like that?" Noora groaned.

"Just answer!" Sana yelled.

"Yes, alright! I like him" Noora said. "Jesus."

Vilde grinned happily. "I knew it! Spin the bottle."

Noora did and it landed on Joakim.

"Truth or dare?"

"Umm...truth", he said.

Noora thought for a moment. "Who is the pretties girl in this room?"

Joakim shook his head. "You got to be kidding me."

"Just answer."

Everyone leaned closer, excited to hear his answer. All the girl were glancing at each other except Sana who looked like she couldn't care less.

"Eva", Joakim finally said.

"Boy, you got good taste", Jonas called out and we all laughed. Joakim blushed and rolled the bottle. It landed on Sana.

"Sana, truth or dare?" Joakim asked.

"You're all pussies", Sana said. "Dare."

"Alright", Joakim said. "Kiss some guy on the cheek."

Sana sighed and I felt her eyes turn on me. "Sorry Isak, but since you're the closest..." She kissed me on the cheek and I could feel Even's arm pressing mine a little bit harder for a moment and woah, what was that about? Sana pulled away and everyone clapped. I glanced at Even who didn't look at me. I didn't understand him. Was he...jealous? Could he be jealous? Or was I just imagining it? He had a girlfriend and I was a guy and we haven't had any that kind of vibes. I think.

"Sana? You have to spin the bottle", Joakim said and motioned towards the bottle. She did and this time it landed on Magnus.

"Truth or--"

"Truth", Magnus said before Sana could end his question.

"Alright." Sana looked around and wondered her question. She glanced at me and then asked, "Have you ever had a crush on your friend's girlfriend?"

I thought that it was a little random question but maybe that was some fact Sana just wanted to know about Magnus.

Magnus laughed. "No."

Sana nodded. "Alright, spin the bottle."

This time it landed on Vilde.

Magnus raised an eyebrow at Vilde.

"Truth", Vilde said.

"Have you ever had a crush on someone younger than you?" Magnus asked and I saw him pressing his hands together hopefully that the answer would be yes and perhaps mean him. I hoped that too, for Magnus's sake.

Vilde shook her head. "Nope."

Magnus's face faltered and I felt bad for him.

The bottle landed next on Even and I thanked God it didn't land on me. It was the second time it had passed me by mere inches.

"Alright, new kid", Vilde laughed. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare", Even said.

"Take off your shirt, we need to see your abs so we can approve you in your group", Vilde said, clearly joking but it still made me frown. Others laughed. Even just shrugged and pulled his shirt off, placing it on his lap. I did my best to not look btu it was hard when Even leaned forward and made the bottle spin again.

Emma. It landed on Emma.

"Truth", Emma said.

"Guys, this is not going to be fun if everyone takes truth!" Jonas called out.

"Sorry but I stick with truth", Emma said, laughing. "Next time I have to take dare, though, so it's fine."

"Alright", Even said. "Who would you like to kiss the most in this camp?"

I turned to glare at Even. He glanced at me and raised eyebrows and I gave him my best ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME -look I could possibly form on my face.

Emma blushed really hard and looked down as she said, "Isak."

A collective 'oooh' filled the room and everyone was clapping and staring at me while I wanted to disappear under the ground.

Emma leaned forward and then the worst happened. The goddamn bottle stopped on me.

"Shit", I muttered under my breath.

"Truth or dare, Isak?" Emma asked, her face still slightly pink.

What were my choices? If I say dare she would probably dare me to kiss her and if I say truth? She would probably want to know if I liked her back. What was I supposed to answer to that? But I had to take the risk.

"Truth", I said.

"Is there someone who you have a secret crush?" Emma asked.

I wanted to thank not only God but Jesus for the way she formed that question. I wouldn't have to say any names. But what was I suppose to answer? I didn't have a secret crush on Emma, that was for sure. But as I constantly could feel Even's arm against mine, which made me feel all kinds of way, I couldn't help but wonder... what if I had a crush on Even? That wasn't completely impossible, was it? Without thinking I moved, causing me to slightly nudge Even's arm and soon I felt him nudge me back. I bit my lip.

"Yeah", I blurted out.

Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus gasped in a shock. "WHO?!"

I shook my head. "Only one question."

Everyone groaned in frustration.

"Emma!" Vilde yelled. "You should've asked who is his secret crush!"

"Don't worry, Vilde", Noora said, grinning at me. "Next time when the bottle lands on Isak we can dare him to kiss his secret crush."

I paled. I hadn't thought about that. Fuck, fuck fuck. Now I just had to hope it wouldn't land on me anymore.

"You guys are mean", I muttered. I glanced at Emma who smiled at me. Shit, now she might think that I like her? Shit.

The game continued and it was a miracle but the bottle didn't land on me anymore. Not once during the whole time we played until the bell rang half past eight to signal us that supper was ready. I sighed in relief and felt Even chuckling beside me. I got up and quickly walked to Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus and we started walking to the dining room.

"Thank God it's over", I said. They were all staring at me. "What?"

"Who is your secret crush?" Magnus asked.

"Is it Emma?" Mahdi asked.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me!" Jonas said.

I pointed at Magnus. "None of your business." I turned my finger on Mahdi. "No." And then I turned to Jonas. "Sorry."

"If it's not Emma then who is it?" Jonas asked.

"I'm not telling you guys", I said shaking my head. "It's private."

We got into the dining room, fetched our food and then ate, talking about the game. When we were done eating the dining room was almost empty and everyone was already left back to beds. We put our dishes away and went to fetch our toothbrushes and then went to brush our teeth. There were a few guys in the shower but they left before we even got to start brushing our teeth. Magnus, Mahdi, Jonas and Eskild were faster than me and when they were about to leave I said I will catch them later because I still wanted to wash my face.

They left and I bent down and put water on my hands, splashing it on my face. When I straightened up I saw Even standing behind me. I jumped and held my hand above my heart.

"Fucking hell, Even!" I yelled. "I got a heart attack."

He grinned. "Sorry."

He started brushing his teeth. "That was pretty smooth how you dodged the second question in the game tonight."

I laughed nervously. "Yeah well, smooth is my second name."

He washed his toothbrush and leaned against the sink, looking at me. "Well, who is it? Your secret crush?"

"No one."

"Come on, spill it."

I shook my head. "You don't need to know."

He raised his eyebrows. "What if I do?"

"Stop that", I said, narrowing my eyes.

"What?"

"That eyebrow thing!" I groaned. "Last time someone did that to me repeatedly we ended up making out so it makes me feel like you're flirting with me or something."

He laughed and walked past me, leaning closer to me, raising his eyebrows. "Who says I'm not flirting with you?"

Then he walked away and I stood there, staring after him with my mouth hanging open. Did he have to be so goddamn flirty person? Had he seriously said that? Was he even being serious? I just generally had no idea what was going. Even had clearly flirted with me, right? It wasn't just my imagination.

I leaned against the sink and rubbed my eyes. This summer camp caused me a lot more stress than what it was supposed to.


	7. Chapter 7

We were having breakfast when suddenly, out of nowhere, it started raining a lot. You couldn't see anything outside from the windows because it was raining so hard. Everyone stared outside, mumbling to each other. I sighed. I had thought about going to rowing with Magnus but it wouldn't happen now.

Chef stood up from his table and clapped his hands, getting our attention.

"It looks like we are not doing any outdoor activities at the moment", he said. "Stay inside, don't go to hiking or anything like that. We don't want you all to get sick. Understood?"

Everyone nodded their heads and mumbled yes.

"I think I'm gonna go to music room", Jonas said.

"We come too, right, Mahdi?" Magnus said, nudging Mahdi's shoulder.

"Sure, sure."

Eskild looked at me. "Do you come too?"

I glanced quickly at Even who was laughing at something Joakim had said. While he made me feel uneasy and confused, I kind of wanted to go to arts because I may or may not wanted to hang out near him. Just out of curiosity, of course.

"Nah", I said, shaking my head. "I'm gonna go to arts, I want to work on my masterpiece."

They started laughing.

I pouted. "What?"

"I wouldn't call it a masterpiece", Mahdi said.

I glared at him.

"You're one to talk", I said. "No one can even tell what you're painting."

"At least I'm almost done with it."

That was true. Both Mahdi and Magnus were almost ready with their paintings while I was still sketching mine. I was slow, I knew that but I wanted to do my best. I wasn't trying to impress Even or anything, but I really liked drawing and wanted to do my best. And also...I kind of wanted to impress Even.

"Eskild, are you going to music?" I asked.

He nodded. "I feel like dancing so I better go and make the party there lit as fuck."

"No swearing!" Chef called out. I had almost forgot that he was sitting rather close to our table.

"Sorry, Chef", Eskild said and grinned at us.

We got up and put our dishes away and then Mahdi, Magnus, Jonas and Eskild walked to the music room. We had to run through the rain as quickly as possible. Luckily the path was short. I waved at them and went to the art room.

It was full of people. We had stayed quite long eating our breakfast so most of the campers had already went to either music or art rooms. I thought how many were in the kitchen helping the cooks. Probably a few. I really should go there too at some point but I didn't want to go yet. Maybe after arts I would go there.

People were talking loudly and I had hard time concentrating. I tried my best to ignore all the voices around me and giggles coming out of girls but it was difficult. Also the fact that I kept glancing at Even without meaning to. I just couldn't help it. He was too... interesting. I had some serious problems.

I pressed my lips together and fixed my eyes on my work.

"Come on, Isak", I muttered to myself. "Concentrate."

My hand was in the air, still and unable to move. I stared at my sketch angrily. I felt like it was mocking me. Mocking my drawing skills, mocking my lack of concentration.

It wasn't so bad. The sketch was probably the best I have ever done. I had already done the woods and a lake. I was still sketching the clouds and a few birds on the sky. I wanted to draw a bonfire and a person playing guitar next to it. Then I would draw myself in. Singing.

To be completely honest, I thought my idea was rather good. At least it was better than Magnus's Vilde painting.

"Having troubles?" I heard Even saying to my ear. He was standing really close behind me, leaning his head almost on my shoulder. I stiffed and then relaxed, breathing out slowly. I got this.

"A bit", I replied. "It's too much noise in here."

"You're doing great", Even said, moving to stand next to me. He eyed my sketch and nodded approvingly. "This looks good."

I glanced at him and bit my lip. "Thanks."

He smiled at me and I sifted uncomfortably and looked away shyly. Why did he have to affect me like this? Goddamn it.

Even moved on and I breathed out, glaring at my sketch. I decided I had been here long enough and it was time to go to the kitchen. I put away my sketch and left the room, wiping my hair out of my face and almost stumbled on Even.

"Sorry", I mumbled, stepping past him.

"Already leaving?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

Stop that. "Yeah. Can't concentrate."

"Alright. See you around, Isak."

I nodded and slipped out of the door and speed walked to the kitchen wanting to desperately be somewhere where there probably wouldn't be so many others.

To my surprise Jonas was in the kitchen too with some girl whose name I couldn't remember. I nodded at them and walked to Jonas.

"What's up?" I asked.

"My dick", he answered.

I fake laughed and punched his shoulder. "Dumbass."

"I couldn't resist", he grinned.

"Why are you not in the music room?" I asked.

"It was boring without you."

I smiled at him and opened my mouth to answer but that's when I heard a voice.

"Alright", one of the cooks said. "We got one more, nice! Hi, Isak."

"Hi, Robert", I replied. He was cooking for us every year alongside with punch of other staff and he was really laid back guy. "What do you want me to do?"

"You and Jonas can start peeling potatoes and Vera, you can come with me. I'll show you something."

The girl, Vera, went with Robert and Jonas and I started peeling potatoes. It wasn't exactly fun but since Jonas was with me it was okay. When it had been my first year here I had had no idea how to peel a potato and Robert needed to teach me that. Now I was pro.

"So, Isak", Jonas started.

I immediately had a bad feeling about what was coming.

"Can we talk about your secret crush?"

I fucking knew it. I groaned loudly and looked at Jonas.

"Do we have to?" I asked.

"I'm sorry but I need to know, okay?" Jonas said. "I'm your best friend, I should know these things!"

I sighed. "You don't have to know everything."

"I do."

"No."

"Yes!" he yelled.

"No!" I yelled back, throwing a potato at him. He dodged it and grinned at me. "Seriously, it's nothing. I don't want to talk about it."

"But I do", he said. "We tell each other everything. You have never ever before crushed on someone here in the camp so I think this is pretty special."

"It's not special", I said, shaking my head. "It's just a stupid crush."

"Then why won't you tell me?"

God, I had almost forgot how stubborn Jonas could be sometimes.

"Because I'm not ready, okay?" I exclaimed and looked away. "I'm not ready."

Jonas went quiet and looked at me for a while before saying, "Okay."

"Okay? Just okay?"

"Yeah, okay", Jonas said. "You tell me when you're ready, right?"

I nodded, looking at him suspiciously. That's when Robert came.

"I need the potatoes and... why is one of them on my floor?"

"My bad", I said. "And here, we are done."

I handed him the potatoes and he put them in the kettle.

"You can go, I don't need anymore help, Vera and I got this", Robert said. "Thanks, guys."

"No problem!" we replied and walked out of the kitchen. We went through the dining room and looked outside. It had stopped raining so we went outside and walked to our cabin to check our phones which we didn't take with us in the morning.

"Mum has called me three times", I said.

"You should call her back tonight."

"I will. If I remember."

Jonas laughed. "I will remind you."

We figured the lunch would be ready soon so there was no point on going back to either music or art rooms so we stayed in the cabin, scrolling through our social media and hoped Eskild wouldn't find us. We heard the bell ring and quickly got up, took our phones with us and ran to the Great Hall because we were starving.

We sat in our table and waited patiently that everyone got settled down. Eskild kicked my foot under the table.

"Where were you?"

"In the kitchen, helping", I said and technically I wasn't lying. "Jonas was with me."

Before Even's table could get up, Chef stood up and said loudly, "Fellas! Let's mix things up a bit for this lunch."

We changed confused looks in our table.

"I want everybody to get up and change tables. You can go sit anywhere you want. Get to know each other. You can go fetch your food in the same order as usually when you have settled down on the tables."

People started to get up. I was too lazy so I just sunk down on my seat and waved my hands to my friends.

"You go", I said. "I stay here."

I also figured I would get my food faster if I wouldn't move. They shrugged and got up, walking away.

"I try to get to sit next to Vilde", Magnus whispered to me and walked away. I rolled my eyes and stared at my hands. Someone sit in front of me and kicked my legs under the table. I lifted my eyes up and saw Even.

"What are you doing?" I asked, confused.

"Switching places", he answered, grinning. Why did he have to do this to me? He could've go anywhere, he didn't have to sit in my table.

"Why here?"

"Chef told us to get to know each other", he said and shrugged. "I'm here to get to know you."

We stared at each other when suddenly Emma and Sana sat in our table. I saw Even furrowing his eyebrows but then he flashed a smile.

"Hi, girls", he said.

"Hi, Even", Emma answered and turned to look at me. "Hi, Isak."

I glanced at Sana who was sitting next to me and hadn't said a thing. I had a feeling she didn't want to be here in our table. Maybe Emma had forced him to come because she wanted to hang out with me? Could that be possible? Probably. I didn't know how to feel about that.

"Hi, Emma", I replied. I was tempted to take my phone out of my pocket and scroll through my social media if only to ignore the awkward silence in our table.

I saw William and some random people sitting in Even's table and they got up, going to fetch their food. When ti was our turn I jumped up fast and speed walked to get food.

The lunch went painfully slowly. Emma kept asking me questions about me and my life even though my answers were short. Sana and Even talked about politics which was incredibly boring. Suddenly I felt a leg touching my own under the table. I looked at Even who glanced at me quickly and then proceed to answer Sana's question.

My heart was racing. Even was doing that on purpose. I felt this tingly feeling in my stomach and I constantly acknowledged his leg touching mine.

Without thinking I nudged gently his leg with my own. He didn't look at me when he nudged me back and then we just sat there, he talking with Sana and our legs pressed together under the table. Was this flirting? Does it count as flirting? I had no idea and I desperately wanted to know. The incident that happened yesterday kept swirling in my mind. Had even meant it, was he really flirting with me? Since when did I become so bad at recognizing if someone was flirting with me? Sure, I knew that Emma was hitting on me but Even? I couldn't understand him or the vibes he was giving to me.

"Isak?"

I turned my eyes to Emma. I had forgot her already.

"What?" I asked dumbly.

"I asked what's your favourite colour?"

Why on earth would she ask something like that? It was so random.

"I don't know", I replied. "Haven't really thought about it."

I looked around and saw people already leaving and going to our practice. I stood up abruptly and took my dishes. "Sorry guys, I think I'm gonna go, the practice, you know."

"Oh, shit. We should come too", Emma said, and got up. I forced out a smile and then the four of us put our dishes away and walked to the music room. It was already filled with people.

They started playing and singing and they sounded rather good. I was bored out of my mind because I still had nothing to rap about and so I had nothing to do during the practice.

I slipped out of the room and went to sit outside on the bench, taking my phone out. I was scrolling through my own Instagram pictures when suddenly Emma appeared next to me.

"What are you doing out here?" she asked.

"Instagram", I replied, wiggling my phone. "What are you doing here?"

"Sore throat", she said, shrugging.

That's probably because she talks too much. And since when was I so uninterested when a girl clearly showed they were into me? What was wrong with me?

She kept talking to me about her family and I listened only with one ear. When people started to walk out I stood up and said to her I should go find my friends.

"Okay, see you around, Isak", she said and smiled at me.

"Yeah, sure", I replied. Why didn't my name sound as good coming out of her mouth as it does when Even says it? Even. It was his fault that I found Emma rather annoying. What has he done to me?

I walked inside and past the music room, which I regretted when my eyes landed on Even, kissing Sonja. I gulped and turned my eyes away. I felt... something unpleasant. I glanced at them and saw Even staring at me. I quickly turned around and walked away. I didn't want to find my friends anymore. I wanted to be alone and what's better for that than going rowing alone. I headed towards the shore, trying to ignore the annoying feeling in my stomach.


	8. Chapter 8

I heard steps behind me but I ignored them, thinking it was probably other campers coming to swim. I reached the shore and there was no one else yet so I took off my hoodie and phone and left them on top of the rock. I climbed in the boat and pushed it off the shore. When I turned around I saw Even running towards me. My mouth dropped open when he jumped and landed straight into the boat, making it swing from side to side and for a moment I was afraid it would flip.

"What the hell, Even?"

"I can't let you go by yourself", he replied.

"Go away."

"No."

I stared at him. I wanted to be alone yet here he was, refusing to leave. Had he seriously ditched Sonja to run after me? Why would he do that?

He sat down and I did so too because one shouldn't stand in a boat. I kept glaring at him and he raised his eyebrows.

"What is wrong?" he asked.

"I wanted to be alone."

"Well you can't go rowing alone. It's against the rules."

I sighed. "Fuck the rules."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "Seriously, what is wrong?"

"Nothing."

Hell to the no. I wasn't going to tell him that I felt kind of jealous when I saw him kissing his girlfriend. I wasn't going to tell him that I kind of had developed a small crush on him during these few days we had been on the island because that would sound crazy and I was probably just imagining everything and he didn't like me back. I started rowing away from the shore.

"Is it Emma? Did something happen with her?" Even asked.

I groaned. "Why everyone keeps thinking I have a thing for her?"

Even shrugged. "It seems pretty reasonable conclusion."

"You know nothing", I hissed through my teeth, rowing as fast as I could until I couldn't see the shore anymore through the woods.

"I do have a girlfriend, though", Even said. "I know a thing or two about girls."

"But you don't know anything about me."

"You're acting stupid."

"You're stupid", I shot back childishly but I also didn't care. "You can go back to your stupid girlfriend and keep your stupid conclusions to yourself."

Even laughed which irritated me even more. What was going on in his pretty little head? I would have really liked to know.

"Wow", he said. "Are you jealous?"

My mouth dropped open. "What? Me? Jealous? Pfft, of course not."

"I think you are."

"You wish", I said, rolling my eyes so hard I could almost see my brain.

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Are you jealous because I have a girlfriend and you don't or are you jealous because you'd like to be in Sonja's place?"

My eyes widened. That was so blunt and unexpected and just what the fuck? Why would he say something like that?

"You're kidding me, right?" I said.

He shrugged and grinned. "Maybe."

"I'm not gay", I said matter-of-factly, feeling the need to explain myself even though literally no one asked. Maybe I was a bit gay but I wasn't going to admit that out loud to him.

"But you are jealous", he said.

"Can you shut up already, I'm not jealous!" I groaned and splashed water on him.

"Oh, no you didn't!"

He stood up and I stood up too, the boat swinging. He pushed me and I pushed back and before I knew it, we were wrestling like little kids and laughing until we finally fell from the boat and into the lake. Really, we had it coming. I shook my head and wiped my face, feeling my clothes getting heavy and trying to pull be under water again. I saw Even swimming towards me.

"This is your fault", Even laughed.

"What? No, you started it!"

"You pushed me overboard!"

I splashed water on him. "You grabbed my hand and pulled me with you!"

He grinned. "Hell no was I going down alone."

I laughed, my previous irritation completely gone. I was starting to be out of breath because my clothes were really heavy and made swimming two times more hard.

"Come on, help me back in the boat", I said. We swam closer to the boat and he pushed me while I pulled myself in the boat and rolled on the bottom of it, breathing heavily.

"A little help here?"

I sat up and grabbed his hand and pulled. It was hard because he was fucking heavy but finally he rolled on the bottom of the boat too, straight on top of me.

He was breathing just as heavily as me and we stared into each other's eyes, panting. I could've swore his eyes went down on my lips for a briefest moment before he looked back into my eyes. My heart was pounding and I cleared my throat.

"You're heavy", I said.

He started laughing and moved away from me, sitting up. "Thanks, kiddo."

I sat up too. "Don't call me kiddo."

"Sure, Isak."

I shook my head and pushed him slightly. "Asshole."

He chuckled and motioned towards the paddles.

"Let's go back", he said.

I grabbed the paddles and started rowing back. "Why am I doing all the work?"

"Because it was your idea to go rowing."

"No one asked you to come, Even."

He grinned and raised his eyebrows. "I'm just doing my job."

"Does your job include bullying campers?"

"I wasn't bullying you."

I wanted to stick my tongue out but I managed to stop myself. "Fine, you teased me."

"You're calling me a tease? That sounds a bit like--"

"Shut up!" I exclaimed. "Or I will push you back in the water."

He lifted his hands up in surrender and wiped his wet hair out of his face. "Fine, fine."

We hit the shore again, getting looks from the swimmers because of our wet clothes. We got out of the boat and I took my hoodie and my phone. Now I was thankful I didn't have them with me when I fell in the water.

"I need to go", Even said. "But this was fun, let's do it again."

I thought about the moment when he had lied on top of me and looked at my lips.

"Highly unlikely", I said and he grinned, walking away. I shook my head, breathing out slowly, not sure if the whole moment in the boat was my imagination or not.

I walked back to our cabin number seven and changed my clothes to try ones. I pulled on a new t-shirt and black shorts. I kicked of my wet converses and pulled on my flip-flops. I left the cabin, ruffling my almost dry hair and headed to the music room.

There was a few other kids too and William, of course. He was sitting with Noora, and they were really close to each other, smiling and talking about something. I raised my eyebrows and walked closer, clearing my throat. They jumped away from each other and Noora blushed.

"Did I interrupt something?" I asked cheekily.

"No, not at all", William said. "What's up, Isak?"

"Nothing special", I said. "Came here to learn something."

William glanced at Noora before standing up. "Sure, come, I will teach you to play piano."

"I didn't know you can play piano", I said, following him to the piano which was standing in the corner of the room. We walked past kids fooling around with instruments and I grinned at them. I was glad they were having fun.

William and I sat by the piano and he played a bit, and then looked at me. He started telling me about the art of playing piano and what were the differences between the black and white keys. I quickly realised that it was rather difficult to remember everything about playing the piano. I couldn't remember which piano keys were C and which were D and so on. But after practising for half and hour I was able to play a little bit of Beethoven's Fur Elise. The start was easy but the rest of the song was impossible.

William clapped his hands. "Very good, Isak!"

I smiled. "Thanks. I don't really think I'm talented enough to play piano but I seriously need to come here and practice more. It's fun."

"That it is."

I continued playing and William moved away, leaving me alone. I stopped playing when Magnus walked in.

"Isak! Here you are!" he said, walking closer to me.

"What's up?" I asked.

He motioned me to stand up. "The lads and I are going to the stables and we want you to come with us."

I said "sure" before I realised that, shit, Sonja would be there. But it was too late to back away now.

"Great, let's go, the lads are waiting outside."

We walked outside and met Jonas and Mahdi there. They lead the way to the stables while I walked behind them, much less excited to go there than what I had been before when Even had been with me.

We reached the stables and saw a few girls standing there with Sonja. The boys walked up to her and she greeted them.

"Hi, boys", she said, smiling and then turned to look at the girls. "Keep brushing Winnie, I will teach the boys the basics."

The girls nodded and Sonja motioned us to follow her. She told us to wait near the fence while she walked in there, took a black horse with her and then tied it to the fence. It wasn't the same horse which I had been brushing the other day but it looked just as calm.

"Okay, who already knows how to brush a horse?"

"I do", I mumbled.

"Oh, right", Sonja said. "You're Isak, right? You were here with Even."

I nodded. I had to admit, she was nice and pretty and everything and I had no reason to dislike her. Goddamn it.

"Well, Isak", she said. "Could you come with me to fetch the brushes and a saddle from the stables?"

I didn't want to but I couldn't say no so I just simply nodded and we walked to the stables while the lads stayed with the horse, eyeing it suspiciously. Sonja took the brushes and then pointed at a saddle hanging on the rack.

"That one", she said.

I nodded and took the saddle which not only looked weird and complicated but was also rather heavy. I carried it to outside and put it on top of the fence. My friends stared at the saddle.

"The fuck is that?" Magnus asked.

"Apparently a saddle", I said.

"Alright, boys", Sonja said. "I will show you how to brush a horse and then you can each try it. Now, what is important is that you stay calm around horses. This is Diablo. He's very calm and kind horse but if you make sudden moves, he will get all jumpy and scared. So just stay calm and don't make sudden moves."

The lads nodded and I leaned against the fence, watching how Sonja taught them how to brush Diablo. It was a beautiful horse, I had to admit that. When the lads finally relaxed around Diablo and managed to actually brush him Sonja smiled and said, "Okay, good, guys. Very good. Now I will show you have to put the saddle on."

I stepped closer because it was new to me, Even hadn't taught me that. We watched how Sonja lifted the saddle up and put it on the horse's back, telling us all the time what she was doing. Watching her doing that it didn't seem so complicated. It actually looked rather easy. I was sure I could do that too. When she was done she turned to look at us.

"Got it?" she asked.

"Yeah", I said.

"Maybe", Jonas said.

"Nope", Mahdi and Magnus said.

"Isak, would you like to try?" Sonja asked.

I eyed the horse and nodded. Sonja took the saddle off and handed it to me. I lifted it on Diablo's back.

"Slide it a little bit back", Sonja said and I did. Then I put down the saddle girth and kneeled down and slowly pulled it under the horse's stomach. Diablo turned his ears back when I tightened it but Sonja patted it's head and nodded me to keep going.

Before I knew it Diablo had the saddle on and Sonja clapped at me.

"Well done, Isak", she said.

"Thanks."

"You guys can do it next time, right?" Sonja said to my friends who nodded hesitantly.

We helped Sonja to take away the brushes and the saddle and then we left. While we were walking back it started raining. We hadn't even noticed that the sky had went dark and we could hear the thunder coming. We ran to the Great Hall, only getting a little bit wet. Just when we got into the Great Hall it started raining really hard and we could see lightnings appearing on the sky.

"Holy shit!" Jonas said. "Summer's first thunderstorm."

"Yas!" Mahdi yelled. "I have been waiting for this."

"You're weird", I commented. I didn't really like the thunder, but Mahdi loved it and I never understood why. I, when come to think about it, might even be a little bit scared of it.

The bell rang and more people gathered to the Great Hall's dining room. Just when Chef stood in front of us all and was about to start speaking, the lights went out and everyone started talking at the same time, some who didn't like the dark were whining loudly.

Suddenly a lighting flashed outside and brought momentarily light into the room. I jumped a little and felt my heart pounding. God, I hated thunderstorms. We heard Chef whistling and we all shut our mouths and listened to him.

"We are going to get flashlights really soon. Meanwhile I have something to tell you; no one is allowed to go outside, it's not safe. We all will sleep here in the dining room. We have sleeping bags and pillows here, just in case something like this would happen. Let's push the tables on the side and you can camp on the floor. Luckily the dinner is already done so you don't have to starve. Don't worry, this will be fun. We all chilling here. Let's move the tables now."

We started moving and together we pushed all the tables on the side and then the supervisors handed out the sleeping bags and pillows to everyone and we sat on the floor while Chef and other staff put on some candles and the supervisors each took a flashlight.

I glanced around in the light of the candles and saw Even walking towards me with his sleeping bag and pillow. He sat down behind me and I breathed out slowly. I told myself to stay calm and not overthink it.

Chef called us to form a line and get dinner. We did and then we ate on the floor, chatting with each other. Magnus, Mahdi, Jonas, Eskild and I had formed a circle and talked with each other, joking about stuff.

That's how it went on the rest of the evening. People just lied on the ground and talked with each other, some were playing the cards and everyone was having a good time just camping on the floor and chilling.

We ate supper at the same time as normally and then Chef reminded as that silence would be at ten and he expected everyone to be quiet then and get some sleep.

The storm outside was crazy and didn't quiet down during the evening. In fact, it was getting worse. I looked outside and shivered. I really didn't like the thunderstorms, I always got all jumpy when the flash of lightning would come.

I jumped when someone poked my arm. I looked down and saw Even lying there, looking at me.

"Scared?" He whispered very quietly because people were already getting ready to sleep.

I kicked off my flip-flops and got inside the sleeping bag.

"No", I whispered, only half lying.

"Liar."

I showed him my middle finger and he grinned. I pressed my head on the pillow and looked on my left. Magnus was lying next to me, already deep in sleep. He wasn't bothered by the storm outside. Not like I was. I doubted I would sleep at all during the night. I would probably stay wide awake the whole night, wincing every time there was a loud rumble outside.

I saw the last of the candles burn out and then it was completely dark and quiet in the dining room. I heard Even sifting on my right side. All the noises seemed louder now. I turned around, lying on my stomach and facing Even, though I couldn't see him in the dark that well.

There was a loud rumble outside and my whole body moved as I got scared and without meaning to jolted. My knee hit Even's leg and he grumbled.

"Sorry", I whispered.

I heard Even hum and I could barely see a small smile forming on his face as he whispered so quietly that I was the only one who could possibly hear it, "I knew you were scared."

I didn't reply, I just pressed my head deeper in the pillow, and shut my eyes. I heard Even sifting again and this time I felt his warmth because he had moved closer to me. For a moment I stopped breathing.

Another loud rumble came from the outside, following by bright flashes and I jolted again before I could stop myself. I sucked in air and tried to calm down. It was just a stupid storm and I seriously needed to grow some balls.

My heart missed a beat when I felt Even's hand moving right next to mine, touching it slightly. I didn't move my hand away, instead I might have moved it a tad bit closer to Even's. For a moment neither of us moved until the loudest rumble so far came right above us, making me grab Even's hand without thinking. When I realised what I did, I tried to pull my hand away but instead he intertwined our fingers and squeezed gently my hand.

I breathed out slowly and tried to calm my pounding heart. I didn't know was my heart beating faster because I was slightly frightened by the storm or because Even was holding my hand. Totally in platonic way, right? It didn't have to mean anything. I could feel my hand tremble and then Even did something that made my hand stop trembling and instead freeze dead still; he caressed my hand with his thumb, slowly and calmly.

I let out the breath I didn't even know I was holding and relaxed a bit more. I concentrated on my breathing and on the calming way Even was moving his thumb against my skin.

When I felt how Even stopped moving his thumb, I knew that he had fallen asleep. I felt myself drifting off too, feeling Even's warm hand still holding mine, in totally platonic way, of course. Or so I thought, not really knowing what it in reality was. He had a girlfriend yet he kept sending me mixed signals and now he was holding my hand like it was no big deal.

I didn't dare to move my hand, afraid that I would wake him up so I let our hands be and breathed out slowly. I kept saying to myself that it wasn't that big of a deal, anyway. Jonas had held my hand sometimes, it was no different with Even if I just ignored the butterflies in my stomach. Right?


	9. Chapter 9

I could feel the light coming out of the window and trying to get through my eyelids. I frowned and didn't open my eyes. I felt the heat surrounding me and then suddenly I realised why and I opened my eyes fast. I stared at Even's face which was mere inches away from my face. I could feel his breath on my face and I swear to God if I would stick my tongue out I would be able to lick his nose. Which, of course, I would never do.

Our bodies were pressed together and our fingers were still intertwined. Had we really slept the whole night like that? Had we really moved closer to each other during the night? I could feel my skin sweating because of the heat that radiated from Even. I listened and didn't hear anything. I was relieved; no one else was awake thus couldn't have seen us.

I stayed dead still, afraid that I'd wake him up if I moved. I had no idea what I would do when he wakes up but I decided I would cross that bridge when I come to it.

Four days I realised suddenly. It was our fourth day in the island. I sighed quietly. How could it be possible that in four days I had developed a crush on a guy who I barely knew? Not to mention who had a girlfriend. It was crazy how much can happen in just four short days. I couldn't understand how it was possible and quite frankly I didn't know if I even wanted to understand.

I stared at Even's face and a small smile creeped on my lips. He looked so mesmerizing while sleeping. He's face was completely relaxed and he was breathing calmly. I wondered if he dreamed about something. How can someone look so good while sleeping? I couldn't understand that. I began to realise that there was lot of things I couldn't understand anymore.

We had basically cuddled the whole night. When I realised that I frowned. He had a girlfriend who he was kissing and all. I couldn't understand what was Even's game, no matter how hard I tried. Maybe he just liked to cuddle platonically with guys? No, that was stupid. Maybe he didn't like Sonja anymore? And what? Liked me? Was that something I secretly hoped for? Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. I didn't know, I couldn't understand my own feelings.

I thought should make a list about the things I couldn't understand. Or maybe a list about the things I could understand, it would be a lot shorter.

The sun was going up and it shined straight to my eyes so I had to narrow them in order to look at Even. I couldn't just close my eyes or turn them away, I had to stare at him like some creep.

"Are you watching me sleep?"

I was so shocked that I jolted away from Even, pulling my hand away from his. It wasn't easy to jolt away from him because I was inside the goddamn sleeping back and I couldn't get as much distance between us as I wanted to. I sat up and tried to calm myself.

"No", I lied, a little bit out of breath. He hadn't opened his eyes so he couldn't see me blushing. I looked at him smiling and nuzzling his face in the pillow.

"I was comfortable", he mumbled.

Seriously? He wasn't even a little bit bothered by the fact that we had been wrapped around each other all night? Jesus Christ, I blushed even harder and didn't know what to answer.

He cracked one eye open and looked at me. "You're blushing."

"I'm not, shut up", I replied, turning my eyes down.

"Cute", he said and I smacked him with my pillow. He chuckled quietly and I took a deep breath, looking around. I saw a few people stirring and then I heard someone's alarm go off. When Chef sat up I realised it was his. He turned it off and looked around.

"Morning, Isak", he said, yawning. "Already up?"

"Morning and yeah, apparently", I replied stretching my arms. I saw from the corner of my eye Eskild sitting up and yawning. He slapped Jonas's, who was sleeping next to him, head and told him to wake up. I nudged Magnus who groaned and rolled to his back.

"No", Magnus mumbled.

"Wake up, sleepy head", I said.

"Shut up, Isak and go back to sleep", I heard Even say.

I turned my head to look at him. He had his eyes closed again. "You're the worst supervisor I have ever seen."

"Ouch", he said and opened his eyes. "Don't mind my feelings."

I stuck my tongue out at him and then turned to look at Magnus again. I crawled out of my sleeping back and kicked Magnus's leg.

"Wake up!" I yelled.

Instead of waking up Magnus, I accidentally woke up other people too.

"Who's yelling?"

"Shut up, we are trying to sleep."

"I swear to God if you don't shut up, Isak..."

"Hey!" Chef yelled. "It's time to get up, fellas!"

"See?" I said. "It's not just me."

People groaned and slowly they started to sit up one by one. I wanted to laugh at their faces. Seeing so many messy hairs and tired faces was hilarious.

I, on the other hand, didn't feel tired at all. I had slept better than ever before. I refused to think that it might be because of Even.

When everyone was up Chef ordered us to take away our sleeping bags and pillows and push the tables back to where they were. It took a bit longer than what it should've but eventually the dining room looked normal again and people were sitting at their tables, looking like they were still half asleep.

I avoided eye contact with Even when we ate breakfast and when we were done, which was when the whole dining room was already empty, I quickly got up and dragged Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas to the cabin where we changed to our swimming trunks and then went to sauna. The only one who wasn't complaining was Mahdi. Jonas and Magnus were not happy that I was so perky so early.

"It's freezing in here", Jonas complained as we sat in the sauna.

"It takes some time to heat up, idiot", I said.

"Can I just sleep here?" Magnus asked, leaning against the wall with closed eyes.

Mahdi slapped him. "No."

"No need to get violent", Magnus muttered and opened his eyes. "If the water is cold I will kill you, Isak."

I spread my arms. "I'm not forcing you to go swimming."

"I'm sweating in sauna, of course I need to go to swim", Magnus said.

I shrugged and breathed in, enjoying how it got slowly warmer and warmer in the sauna. I threw water on the stones and the air got immediately warmer.

"Jeez, I can't breathe, it's too early for this", Magnus complained and got up. "I go to swim."

"Alright", I said. Magnus left but came back soon, complaining that the water was too cold. He sat down and rubbed his eyes.

"This day is going to be so long", he muttered.

"Suck it up", Mahdi said, clearly enjoying being in the sauna. "No one wants to listen you complaining the whole day."

"Fuck you, Mahdi", Magnus said.

"Why are you so quiet, Jonas?" I asked.

"I'm tired, Isak", he replied.

I rolled my eyes. We stayed in the sauna rather long and we left when a few guys came in, saying it was almost lunch time. Had we really stayed in the sauna for that long? We walked to the lake and took a quick swim. We heard the bell ringing and ran to the dining room, not having the time to change our clothes back. We got in and my hair was still wet and I had to push it out of my face.

We sat on our table and I accidentally looked at Even who eyed me up and down before raising his eyebrows, a small smirk on his lips.

I turned my eyes away, trying not to smile. Had he really just checked me out? I looked at Eskild.

"What's up, Eskild?" I asked, trying to get my mind off of Even.

"Can't wait to go to swim", Eskild said. "It was so hot in here during the night because of all the people that I sweated like a small pig."

I laughed and could relate to his words completely. Only my sweating was due the fact that I had been pressed against Even, not because there was so many people in the same room. We ate the lunch and Jonas and I were almost the first ones to leave the dining room.

We went in the music room and greeted William who was just about to lift his guitar up.

"Morning", he replied. "Wanna play something?"

"Sure", Jonas said and he took a guitar also. He started playing Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" and William joined in. I sat down and started singing along. We continued playing and singing when people started to slide in the room and I didn't stop singing until I saw Even coming in. Jonas and William stopped playing and William kept a small speech before they started the practice. I listened from the side and nodded my head to the beat. They were sounding rather good. Of course, they could be better but we had a lot of time to practice.

I took a paper and a pen and wrote down a few lines of lyrics before going to William and tapping his shoulder. He motioned everyone to keep going and then he looked at me.

"What?" he asked.

"I wrote down a few lines and I was thinking I could try them out in our next rehearsals?"

"Yes, of course!" William said, sounding really pleased. "That's great, Isak."

I nodded. "Yeah, whatever."

He went back to playing and before I even knew it, the rehearsals ended and everyone started to get out, chatting happily with each other about how they were getting so much better.

Magnus and Mahdi stayed in the music room and Jonas and I finally decided that it was time for us to go to the woodworks since we hadn't been there yet.

We walked there and got in, seeing Hans and Arnold there too, along with few other guys we didn't know. Eskild was there, explaining about what we should do.

"What do you know about doing a clock?" I asked from Eskild.

"Next to nothing but it's my turn to be here so let's see how it goes", Eskild replied and motioned us to start. Jonas and I laughed as went to pick up a piece of wood from which we would start doing the clocks.

"We should really go to sports some day", Jonas said. "I would like to try archery and swordplay. I heard Chris is usually there to teach us and yes, I know you don't like him but imagine how fun it could be."

I shrugged. "Yeah, we should go there some day. I have seen people swordplay in the yard and it looks cool."

"Archery is the most interesting one", Jonas said, sighing dreamily.

I slapped his shoulder. "Alright, Katniss, stop daydreaming. We have clocks to do."

"Oi, shut up", Jonas laughed and pushed me.

We continued to work on our clocks and listened how Hans and Arnold joked around and Eskild trying to tell them that handling a knife like that was dangerous but they weren't really listening and Eskild was starting to lose his nerves.

That's when Even knocked on the wall and stepped inside. "Hi, guys."

I pressed my lips together and stared at my piece of wood intensively. This was just my luck. I could feel his presence with every cell on my body and I had no idea how to relax myself.

"Thank God!" Eskild sighed. "Keep a close eye on those two rascals in the back or they will stab someone soon."

"Alright", Even laughed. "Go, you are needed at the shore."

"Aaaah", Eskild sighed. "Finally I can go to swim!"

He patted my shoulder as he walked past me and ran off. I looked after Eskild and smiled. God, he was amazing. I hoped we could see more often during the winters but he was a busy guy. We met last winter a couple of times but usually we hang out during the summer breaks and of course, in the Holly Camp.

"How's it going?" Even asked from Jonas and I, stepping closer.

"I have no idea what I'm doing", Jonas confessed.

"I think this might be the ugliest clock you'll ever see", I said, using the knife to get a piece of wood off. "Like uglier than what Patrick did in The Perks of Being a Wallflower."

Even laughed. "That's a good movie."

I glanced at him and was slightly caught off guard by how beautiful he looked when he was smiling so widely that his eyes were practically closed.

"Yeah, it is", I said and turned my eyes away when I realised I had been staring at him, probably looking more fond than what I cared to admit.

Jonas sighed. "I remember when you forced me to watch it when I had a massive hangover."

Even raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were underage."

"Oh, please", Jonas said. "As if you never drank when you were underage."

Even grinned and glanced at me, winking. "Maybe I did a couple of times."

I wanted to tell him to stop sneaking glances at me and making me feel uncomfortable but I kept my mouth shut and just tried to do something to my soon to be clock. I had not lied when I said it will be the ugliest clock ever. It already looked horrible and I was only getting started.

Even went to coach Hans and Arnold and I sighed in relief, feeling like I could breathe again. I couldn't hep but wonder if I had a same effect on Even as he had on me? If I had then Even was hiding it really well. Maybe he was just smoother than I was.

Suddenly the bell started ringing and I frowned.

"Is it already dinner time?" I asked from Jonas.

He looked at the clock on the wall and said, "It's four. They are early."

"Yeah, usually it rings closer to five." I grinned at Jonas. "More free time to us, though."

We chuckled and followed Even out and walked in the dining room. Hans and Arnold pushed past us and ran to their table. Jonas and I glanced at each other and rolled our eyes. We walked behind Even to our table and I couldn't help but sneak a glance of his butt as he walked.

Come on, I should at least try to act chill. I mentally slapped myself and sat on the table. Eskild and Mahdi and Magnus walked in and came to our table, sitting down and talking about something I wasn't interested about. I just stared at Even who was talking with the guys on his table and smiling and laughing. I smiled to myself and Even just then turned to look at me. I quickly turned my gaze down and once again mentally slapped myself.

I sucked at this 'keep your cool' thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hold on there, something big about to happen soon! ;)


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't published this on Wattpad yet but I thought I will publish it here because I love you and you deserve it. I hope you enjoy this, I certainly enjoyed writing it! Thank you for everything. xx

We were almost done eating when Emma walked to our table. I glanced at my friends confusedly but they just shrugged and ignored Emma, leaving me to handle her on my own. I hated my friends.

"Hi, Isak", she said.

"Hi", I replied. "What's up?"

"We...um, have kind of a party in our cabin six."

I raised an eyebrow. "A...party?"

She shrugged. "You know, no alcohol, obviously, but just music, playing cards, eating and stuff."

"Oh."

She wiggled her fingers and looked at me shyly. I wanted to sigh.

"I was wondering if you and your friends would like to come?"

"We... uh, we--"

"We will come", Magnus interrupted. "Of course we will come, don't mind Isak, he's a little bit slow sometimes."

I glared at Magnus and sighed. "Yeah. We'll come."

Her whole face lit up and she smiled widely. "Oh, that's great. You can come any time after dinner."

"Yeah, okay", I said. She smiled at me and then walked away. I sunk down on my seat. Magnus slapped my head. "Ouch, what was that for?"

"For being an idiot", Magnus said. "She clearly likes you so what's the problem here?"

"I'm not interested", I muttered.

Magnus rolled his eyes and I rubbed my face in frustration. I knew I should probably tell my friends about... my situation but I didn't know how. What if they would take it badly? What if they wouldn't understand? Also how to bring up something I couldn't even explain to myself? The way I saw it, there was no way I could tell my friends about my situation.

We finished eating and left the dining room. We went to our cabin and changed our clothes. Magnus insisted we would go there already. I tried to say to him that we should wait but he didn't want to so we got out of the cabin and started walking towards the cabin number six. We heard the music far away and saw people standing outside, jamming and laughing with each other. We walked past them into the cabin and saw Emma, Sana, Noora and that one girl from their cabin, Nora. There was also Vilde and Sonja and Even.

I bit my lip and looked at Even. Our gazes met and I turned my gaze away. Vilde, Sana and Nora were playing cards while Emma sat on the side, talking with them. When she saw us she got up and came to greet us.

"I'm so happy you guys came!" she said.

I forced a smile on my lips. Jonas and Mahdi went outside to talk with the guys and Magnus sat down on the floor, joining the card game. Emma pulled me to the bed and we sat down. She was sitting close to me. I glanced at Even. He was talking with Sonja, leaning against one of the cabinets. Sonja was explaining something, swinging her arms in the air and laughing occasionally.

I turned my eyes away and tried to ignore them, even though I could see them from the corner of my eye all the time. It bothered me.

Why did it bother me so much? Did I really like Even so much that I got jealous when he was with his girlfriend? It seemed like I did. Damn it. Why this had to happen to me? I just wanted a nice, relaxing summer camp for God's sake.

"Isak?" Emma said and I snapped out of my thoughts, looking at her.

"Sorry, what?"

"I asked do you want Coca Cola?"

I shrugged. "Yeah, sure."

She handed me the bottle and I opened it, taking a sip. God, I had almost forgot how good Coca Cola was.

I kept talking with Emma, she babbled and I barely had time to answer to her when she was already babbling about something else. It was really hard to keep up with her when she changed the subject all the time.

I didn't even notice when my eyes drifted on Even and Sonja again. I gritted my teeth when I saw them kissing each other. I felt... angry. I turned my eyes away and looked at Emma. Yeah, fuck it.

I grabbed Emma and pulled her into a kiss and she stopped babbling immediately, kissing me back. I kept my hand on her neck and kept kissing her, not feeling a thing. She wrapped her hands around me and I heard a collective 'ooh' coming from the other people in the cabin.

We pulled apart when someone sat down on the bed. I looked up and saw Even. He stared at us and then said, "I thought you two were getting too comfortable. Guess we figured who Isak's secret crush is."

No you didn't, I thought but didn't say a thing, instead I stared at Even who met my gaze for a moment, his face blank before he turned to look at Emma and smiled somehow creepily, as if he had to force the smile out.

"You're blushing, Emma", he said.

"Oi, shut up", Emma laughed and pushed Even. I heard Magnus clapping and saying 'You go, Isak'. I wanted to tell him to shut up.

I stood up, avoiding Even's eyes. "I need to go outside for a bit."

"Oh, okay", Emma said, looking confused.

I left the cabin and pushed past Mahdi and Jonas.

"Hey, where are you going?" Mahdi asked.

I ignored him and kept walking.

"Isak!" Jonas yelled after me but I walked away. I went to our cabin, grabbed my towel and went to the showers. There was no one else and I was happy, I needed to be alone. I stripped out of my clothes and stepped under the shower and enjoyed the warm water running down my body. I rubbed my face, sighing. I already regretted that kiss but what else was I supposed to do. I had gotten jealous and thought it was a good idea.

Clearly it wasn't because now Emma would tail behind me even more. I didn't want that. I didn't want any of this shit to happen yet it did and now I had to live with the fact that I had kissed someone else in front of my crush who had a girlfriend who he was also kissing and just what the fuck. The whole thing was such a mess.

I felt angry, confused, sad and frustrated. I didn't know it was even possible to feel so many things at once.

When I stepped out of the shower my thoughts were still as messy as before. I saw Joakim when I walked in front of the mirror, pushing my wet hair out of my face.

"Hello, Isak", he said.

"Hi", I replied, happy to get some distraction from my thoughts.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask", he said, "Have you been in the sports yet? I wondered what it's like?"

I shook my head. "I haven't been there. I should go, though. Archery sounds rather fun."

"Yeah, it does", he said. "Maybe I'l go tomorrow."

I smiled at him. "Maybe we will see there."

He nodded and walked into the shower. I changed my clothes back on and walked to our cabin, ignoring the music coming out of the cabin six as I passed it, keeping my distance so no one would notice me.

I tossed my towel away and fell to my bed on my back. I felt something under me. I rolled aside and took a piece of paper in my hands, reading it.

"Meet me at the shore at midnight, - E", was all it said. I frowned. E as in Emma or E as in Even? I didn't know. I tried to recognize whether the hand writing was boy's or girl's but I couldn't tell, it could be both. I bit my lip.

What if it was Emma? I definitely didn't want to meet her. But what if it was Even? I wasn't sure if I wanted to meet him either but that was still a better option than Emma. Should I go or not? I put the paper in my pocket and hugged my pillow and started scrolling through my phone, trying to distract my thoughts.

Eventually the lads came back in our cabin.

"Isak", Jonas said. "I heard you made out with Emma."

"I thought you didn't like her", Mahdi said, frowning. "Had a change of heart?"

I glared at them. "Do we have to talk about it?"

"Yes!" Magnus said. "Emma wondered where you left and she couldn't talk about anything else for the rest of the time."

"That was probably why Even left so soon too", Jonas said, looking at me. "He probably didn't want to listen it anymore because to be honest it started to get annoying after couple of hours."

Even had left earlier? I touched my pocket. It had to be Even who had left the note. Did I want to go meet him? Maybe a little bit. I was way too curious to just ignore it.

"Uh-huh", I said. "Did you guys have fun anyway?"

"Besides the fact that Emma annoyed literally everyone, yes", Jonas said. "Magnus lost all the card games and Vilde laughed at him."

Magnus sighed. "I love her laugh."

I shook my head. "You're hopeless."

We continued talking until Eskild came and said the supper is ready. I wasn't hungry and said I will skip it.

"You can't!" Eskild said. "Chef will notice that you're not there and he will get pissed. You have to eat."

I sighed. "Fine."

I didn't want to go there and see Emma and Even but I didn't have a choice so I got up and we walked to the dining room. I avoided eye contact with literally everyone because I knew news travelled fast and I didn't want to see the looks on people's face, especially Emma and Even's.

I ate as quickly as possible and left before my friends were ready. I went back to the cabin and was already under the covers when my friends came back with Eskild.

We didn't talk much, everyone was too busy staring at their phones. I didn't mind being antisocial for once. When everyone else started sleeping, I stayed up, staring at my phone and wondering whether I should really go to the shore or not.

What if it was Emma and not Even? She would definitely want to make out more and talk about feelings and stuff and I wasn't up for it. But what if it was Even? What could he possibly want? I couldn't come up with anything. Maybe he would tell me that kissing was forbidden and he would tell Chef if I would do it again? I shook my head and mentally slapped myself because that was stupid. Even had kissed Sonja plenty of times, it wasn't forbidden.

I looked at my phone and noticed it was almost midnight. I listened and heard that it was dead silent in the cabin—They were sleeping. I made my decision and sat up quietly. I tiptoed to the door, pulled on my converses and slipped out of the door.

It was against the rules to go out during the night but I didn't care about the rules, it wasn't the first time I broke them. And who would ever know I had walked outside after ten, anyway?

When I neared the shore I saw the full moon shining bright on the sky, it's reflection on the lake. I saw someone sitting by the line where grass ended and the sand started. It was definitely Even. I walked closer and sat down next to him.

"Hi", he said.

"Hi", I replied.

I turned my eyes on him while he kept staring at the lake. I noticed a joint behind his ear. I reached my hand out and took it.

"Are you serious?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

Not that I had anything against smoking marijuana, I had done it too, but had he really smuggled a joint to the island? Who even does that?

He shrugged and turned to look at me. "I didn't want to smoke alone."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "And you thought I'd want to smoke with you?"

"You don't?"

I grinned. "Of course I do."

He smiled and took the joint from me, putting it between his lips and lightning it. He blowed out the smoke after holding it in for a moment and handed the joint to me. I took it and smoked a bit before passing it back to him.

We sat in silence, just smoking until he dropped it on the sand and stepped on it with his shoe. He fell on his back on the grass and I lied down next to him. We stared at sky. I felt my body getting heavy but at the same time I felt as if I was light as a feather. Suddenly Even spoke, startling me a bit.

"Your friend is pretty obsessed with Vilde."

I started laughing, feeling myself getting high. In fact, it hit me so hard I couldn't stop laughing.

"Come on, it's not that funny", Even said but started laughing too.

"Oh, it is!"

"That painting he's doing about Vilde is awful", Even said and laughed. "Don't tell him I said that."

"He's so desperate", I laughed. "It's ridiculous."

"Oh, and you're not desperate?" Even said and turned to look at me. My laughter quieted down and I stared into his eyes. He grinned at me.

"What? Me? Of course not, I don't know what you're talking about."

"I saw you kissing Emma", he said. "That looked pretty desperate."

I sighed and turned my eyes back on the sky. Did he had to bring it up? I didn't like Emma and it was stupid that everyone assumed I did. Just because I kissed her in a whim it didn't mean I necessarily liked her.

"I wasn't desperate", I denied.

"I get the vibes that you want desperately to kiss me."

I wanted to scream. Why did he have to say so random things out of the blue? It caught me off guard and I gasped.

"What? You're crazy", I said.

He laughed. "Am I wrong?"

"Yes!"

"You're a terrible liar."

"I'm a good liar. Not that I lied, I didn't. I don't, I'm not desp--"

"Chill", he laughed. "I'm just teasing you. I think it became pretty clear what you want when you kissed Emma."

Why would he tease me like that? Why would he joke about me wanting to kiss him? Where did that come from? I sighed and felt how the need to explain myself came and I couldn't keep my mouth shut.

"I don't have a crush on Emma", I said, staring at Even intensively.

"I didn't ask, Isak", Even said, eyeing me. He was so close I could see every detail of his face. So fucking close.

"Thought you should know", I muttered quietly, my eyes drifting down on his lips momentarily. Was it odd that they looked beautiful?

"Why?" Even said, just as quietly as I had spoke.

I didn't answer to him, mainly because I didn't know what to say and because goddamn it he was so close I could barely breathe, much less form words.

"I don't want Emma", I managed to get out finally after a long silence.

"Alright", Even said. "What do you want, then?"

'You' was what I wanted to say. I parted my lips but no words came out. He glanced my lips and then eyed me, raising an eyebrow. He was waiting for my answer.

I couldn't get a word out of my mouth, I couldn't breathe. I was drowning in his eyes and I didn't know how to get back to the surface.

What was I supposed to do next?


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You wanted it, you get it. I aim to please. Enjoy! x

"You are really not gonna tell me?" he asked.

"You don't need to know", I whispered, my eyes fixed on his.

He licked his lips which didn't go pass me.

"What if I do?" he whispered, his voice so quiet I could barely hear it.

I was about to answer but he suddenly leaned forward and pressed a kiss on my lips. A thousand butterflies started flying in my stomach and I couldn't breathe. He pulled back, staring at me. I didn't understand what just happened or what it meant but there was one thing I knew; I wanted more.

I rolled on top of him before he could realise anything and kissed him passionately. His hands came up to my waist and I sunk my fingers in his hair. He licked my lips and I opened my mouth, letting him slip his tongue in my mouth. I pulled his hair gently and he moaned against my mouth, sliding his hands on my sides, making me arch my back and shiver.

"I knew you were desperate to kiss me", he mumbled against my lips.

"Shut up", I mumbled back and moved my hand on his neck, pressing our lips harder together.

Suddenly a voice yelled, "Who's there?"

We pulled apart, staring at each other with wide eyes.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck", Even said, pushing me off of him and standing up. "Run!"

We ran away as fast as we could and avoided the flashlight which Chef was holding. I couldn't believe he actually patrolled around the island during the night to make sure no one was breaking the rules. All those years in the island and I never knew that. Even pulled me by my hand and we ran past the cabins until we hid behind a tree. I leaned against the three and Even was right in front of me, his hands on either side of my head.

We were both breathing heavily and staring at each other, adrenalin running through our veins.

Chef was no where near because we couldn't here him anymore. We had managed to escape, which, to be honest, was a real miracle.

"I think it's safe to go", Even whispered.

"Yeah", I whispered back, not turning my eyes off of him. My head was still spinning and I was still high, from the marijuana and the kiss.

Even stepped forward and pressed our bodies together. He kissed me again. My hand automatically came up to his hair and then he pulled back, leaning our foreheads together.

"Go", he whispered. "Before Chef comes."

I nodded and Even stepped away from me. I sneaked from behind the tree and jogged back to our cabin. I got in as silently as possible and I was just about to lie down on my bed when I heard Jonas mumbling something.

"What?" I whispered.

"Where were you?" he repeated quietly, his eyes closed.

"Nowhere", I lied and got under the covers. I stared into the darkness. I had kissed Even. I had actually rolled on top of him and full on made out with him. And he hadn't pushed me away. No, he had kissed me back just as eagerly. I couldn't believe it had actually happened. My heart was still pounding fast and my head was a mess. I just knew that before this summer camp is over, I'm going to need a whole lot of serious therapy.

I couldn't help but wonder what would happen next? Will Even ignore me? Act like it never happen? Or will he start pursuing me? Could that happen? I didn't know if I wanted it to happen. I couldn't help but feel what we did was wrong. He had a girlfriend and everything.

I didn't have time to think about it any more because my eyelids started to get heavy, marijuana was wearing off and I just couldn't keep my eyes open. I yawned and slowly fell asleep, promising myself I would handle my messy thoughts in the morning.

Eskild's alarm clock went off way too soon. I hadn't slept nearly enough. I groaned and rolled on my back.

"Why, oh why?" I complained. "Can I just skip the breakfast and go back to sleep?"

"No", Eskild said and got out of the bed. He started shaking Jonas awake. "Wake up!"

"I'm awake, just don't feel like opening my eyes", Jonas mumbled.

"Is it just me or is it really fucking hot in here?" Magnus asked, sitting up and glaring around.

"It's fucking hot in here", Mahdi mumbled.

"I bet it's even hotter outside", I said and sat up, stretching my arms and yawning. "It's going to be a long day."

Suddenly I remembered last night and exactly why I was so tired. Shit, had it really happen? Had I really kissed Even? It felt surreal, maybe it was just a dream. Yeah, that's it. It was a dream.

We got out of our beds and got dressed up before following Eskild to the Great Hall. I was glad Jonas didn't seem to remember that he had woke up during the night because I didn't know what to tell him. Lie that I had never been outside? Say that I was alone watching the moon? I doubted he would believe me.

We sat on our table and I kept glancing around, waiting for Even to come. I wanted to see him, just to make sure that I had been dreaming the whole kiss. It couldn't have actually happened... right?

When I finally saw Even walking in with his group I immediately noticed how tired he looked. He walked slowly and yawned a couple of times before reaching his table. I met his eyes and I just knew that it hadn't been a dream.

Goddamn it.

I had kissed Even.

Even, who had a girlfriend. I didn't necessarily regret kissing him, after all I had wanted it but I did feel a tad bit guilty. He had a girlfriend who clearly liked her very much. It didn't seem fair. I turned my gaze down.

I decided right there and then that I would ignore that the kiss had ever happened. Probably Even regretted it too. I mean, why wouldn't he? I was just a random camper and Sonja was his lovely, beautiful girlfriend.

"Before we start eating", I heard Chef say, "I would like to remind you all that going outside during the night is against the rules."

Oh shit. What if he saw us well and recognized us?

"Last night two of you were outside past midnight. Now while I don't know who these two were, I would like to say that whatever you were doing outside, it's not worth it. We have these rules for a reason. Don't ever break them again."

I sighed in relief. He hadn't recognized us which was good. I could feel Even's eyes on me but I avoided looking back at him. I turned to look at Jonas who looked me with furrowed eyebrows.

"What?" I asked, sounding more rude than what I intended.

"Nothing", he said and I let it go.

We ate the breakfast and I had to constantly remind myself to not look at Even's table. No matter how much I wanted to check if he was looking, I couldn't. I had to forget the whole episode of last night's. He had a girlfriend and I was still pretty sure he regretted kissing me... Repeatedly.

After breakfast Jonas and I decided that it was finally time we would go to the sports. Now, as I said before, I'm not much of an athlete but I wanted to learn. So we met Chris outside and he greeted us, smiling widely. I hated that he was so energetic and excited. I felt so tired I could barely take a step without feeling like I'd fall on the ground and start sleeping.

We were not the only ones in there. Joakim was there too, along with Hans and Arnold, the two rascals. Joakim stood alone and waved at me while Hans and Arnold were joking around and not listening to what Chris was saying.

Chris told us the basics of how to handle a sword and then he passed us our swords. They were not real, obviously. They were made of wood and they were not sharp at all. Jonas and I looked at each other and shrugged. This could be fun.

Chris told us to get pairs and start practicing. I, of course, paired up with Jonas, Hans and Arnold with each other and Joakim was with Chris.

Jonas and I took the position Chris had showed to us and then started battling. While it was fun, I was so tired I kept messing up all the time and Jonas made the sword to fell off my hands countless of times. I moved slowly and sloppily, and I was having a hard time to keep my eyes open.

Chris noticed me messing up all the time and he walked closer to me with Joakim.

"Are you okay, Isak?"

I shook my head. "I'm not feeling well, I'm so tired."

Chris was quiet for a moment before saying, "Okay. Go to sleep until lunch time. Let's not tell Chef about this, alright?"

I nodded and then thanked him. I waved at Jonas and walked away. I went straight to our cabin and snuggled under the covers.

Images of Even's lips popped into my head and I groaned. Why couldn't I get him out of my head? I couldn't get out of my head how soft his lips had felt, how his hands had travelled up and down on my body, how he had moaned against my lips, how soft his hair had been... Shit, I was losing it. I shook my head and sighed. I needed to get my shit together.

"What you did was wrong", I said to myself. "He has a girlfriend. You don't want to be the reason they break up."

As if Even would break up with Sonja just because of me. I wasn't worth it, I was sure of it.

I pushed Even out of my mind, put and alarm clock on and snuggled my head deep in the pillow and closed my eyes. I fell asleep before I even knew it.

A few hours later my alarm clock started making that terrible noise and I groaned, pressing the snooze button. I sat up, knowing how messy my hair was. I ran my fingers through it and yawned. I was still a bit tired but the nap had been great, I felt much better because of it.

I got out of the bed, stretched and then left my phone on the bed and headed out. I jogged to the Great Hall and reached it just when our table got up to fetch food.

I joined them and then we sat back in our table.

"Had a good nap?" Jonas asked me quietly so that no one else would hear.

I nodded and stuffed food in my mouth. I listened how Eskild, Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus talked about how the school would start soon and I didn't care to join that conversation; thinking about school was the last thing I wanted right now.

"Earth calling Isak."

I turned to look at Magnus. "What?"

"You're coming with us to the arts after lunch."

My eyes widened and I tried to come up with some excuse. "I—Uh, I--"

"I wasn't asking. You are coming with us", Magnus said matter-of-factly and I sighed, giving in. When come to think about it, I might as well go since I wouldn't be able to avoid it forever, I had to finish my painting.

We walked out of the dining room and made a quick stop at the bathrooms before heading to the art room. There was only one girl with us and she looked very concentrated on her painting so I didn't bother to greet her. Even was sitting in front of his painting, eyebrows furrowed and his tongue between his lips.

Why did he have to look like that?

I took my sketch and then stared at it intensively. I really needed to quicken my drawing or else I wouldn't be able to finish it like... ever.

Magnus and Mahdi started sketching as well as Jonas but I just stared at it and thought about Even, knowing damn well he was only few meters away from me.

How was it even possible that I had managed to get myself in this? It was only our fifth day on the island and I was already in deep shit. I had kissed a guy who had a girlfriend. Or no, forget that. A guy who had girlfriend had kissed me and then I had demanded more. That was my definition of being in deep shit. I had no idea what I should do for now on.

"Are you going to just stare at it for the whole time?"

For a moment my heart skipped a beat because I thought Even had spoke to me but then I realised it was just Jonas.

"Um...No", I replied and took a pencil and started working on the bonfire.

During the hours we spent on the art room, Even didn't, not even once, come to talk to me. Usually he popped out of nowhere to talk with me but now he just sat where he was, working on his painting. I stared at him, frowning. Was he really, seriously regretting that kiss? I didn't know how to feel about that.

Suddenly he looked up and I quickly turned my eyes away, biting my lip. Shit, had he noticed that I was staring at him? I didn't dare to look at him again. When I checked the time and it was close to three I suggested to my friends that we would go to swim before dinner.

"God, yes!", Mahdi said.

"It's freaking hot here in inside", Magnus complained. Jonas was oddly quiet but I didn't want to bother him by asking what's wrong. If he wanted to talk, he would say something to me. He always did.

We left the art room and changed in to our swimming trunks, took our towels and then went to the shore. I stared at the spot where Even and I had been making out and blushed at the simple thought of it.

I shook my head and tossed my towel on top of the big rock and stepped into the water.

"Guys", I said. "I think this is the warmest the water has ever been."

The lads ran into the water, screaming in joy and I followed them, laughing. There was no one else so we were free to joke and play as we wanted. Of course, a few supervisors came to supervise us but there wasn't others swimming. We had a massive water fight and then Mahdi and Magnus went into the boat and rowed next to us. We climbed in there from the water and then we wrestled in the boat. The winner was the one who didn't fell into the water.

It kind of reminded me about the time Even and I had fell from the boat but I ignored that thought and continued having fun with my friends.

Suddenly we heard the bell ringing.

"Shit!" Mahdi said. "We are going to be late."

Magnus and I swam to the shore and Jonas and Mahdi rowed. We ran to our cabin, changed to our clothes and then ran to the Great Hall. We saw from the windows that everyone was already inside. Mahdi, Magnus and Jonas ran in and I was just about to follow them when someone grabbed my arm.

I turned to look and saw Even.

I gulped.

"We need to talk", Even said, eyeing me.

I shook my head. I didn't want to talk. I already knew what he was going to say and I agreed with him. It had been a mistake because he had a girlfriend and we should just forget it ever happened.

"There's nothing to talk about", I said.

"What? No, Isak."

"Seriously, I get it", I said. "You have a girlfriend and everything and you want to forget it. Don't worry, me too."

He stared at me with his mouth hanging open. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

I didn't listen to him, instead I stared anywhere but him and said, "It's okay, really, it's not like I have a crush on you or something."

That, of course, was a tiny white lie but I was sure I could get over that stupid crush soon. It just wasn't easy because Even was still holding my arm, making me feel all tingly and everything.

"Oh, really?" Even said, stepping closer. "Can you look me into eyes and say that again?"

I stared at him, completely lost. "What?"

"Look me into eyes and say that you don't like me", he repeated.

I opened and closed my mouth at least five times, staring at him.

"I—I--", I couldn't get those words out of my mouth, not when he was staring at me so intensively. Why was he doing this to me, anyway? Why did he demand me to answer to something like that?

"You can't say it, can you?", he asked, and I could swear he was trying really hard not to grin.

I finally pulled my arm free.

"This is stupid", I said and turned my back to him and walked inside the Great Hall.


	12. Chapter 12

On our sixth day on the island, we woke up when Eskild jumped up, yelling, "Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

"What?" I mumbled still half asleep.

I was having a great dream which I couldn't remember, I just knew it had been great. I had that warm, fuzzy feeling. I sat up and glanced around, seeing my friends sit up too, staring at Eskild, confused looks on their tired faces.

"We are late!" Eskild yelled. "Get up, get up! We gotta go!"

Knowing damn well Chef would rip our heads off if we didn't show up on breakfast, we all got out of our beds in a record time and got dressed. We ran out of the cabin and to the Great Hall. We ran inside just when the last table got up to fetch their food. We walked to our table and Chef raised an eyebrow to us.

"You're late", he said.

"But we are here, aren't we?" Eskild said. "We overslept."

"I see that." Chef motioned us to go get our food and start eating.

I took a bowl of cereals and sat on our table. I felt eyes on me and when I looked up my eyes landed automatically on Even. I turned my eyes quickly back down, staring at my cereals like they were the most interesting thing in the world.

"Are you coming?" I asked from my friends as I stood up to leave.

They shook their heads. They wanted to stay and eat more so I shrugged and was about to go when Jonas called my name.

"What?" I asked.

"Let's go work on our clocks? I will come soon", he said. I shrugged and nodded.

I was all the time painfully aware of Even staring at me and I tried my best to not look back at him. I couldn't understand him. Did he like me? Was that why he had demanded me to admit that I like him? Or was he just and asshole who wanted an ego boost? I had no idea.

With a sigh I started walking out of the dining room. On my way my eyes locked with Emma's and she stared at me until I turned my eyes away. She hadn't talked me since I had ran away from the party and frankly, I hoped she never will. Which, then again, was highly unlikely.

I was on my way to the woodworks when a hand grabbed my arm and stopped me.

"Isak, wait up."

I turned slowly around and looked at Even and then his hand which was holding my arm. He let go of me and cleared his throat.

"What do you want?" I asked, trying not to frown too hard.

"Skip the practice with me."

"What?"

"Skip the pra--"

"I heard you the first time!" I snapped. "I meant, why?"

"Because I seriously need to talk with you", Even said. "Please?"

"I don't know", I said because honestly I had no idea if I wanted to hear what he had to say. I couldn't understand him, I had no idea what he would possibly want from me. I had a feeling I should have some idea but maybe I was just too dumb to realise it.

"Please, Isak", he pleaded. "You don't have to say anything, if you don't want. Just... let me talk to you."

I hesitated but eventually sighed, nodding. "Alright."

"Thank you", Even said and took a step back. "Wait for me in front of the Great Hall after lunch."

I nodded and he walked away. I sighed again and shook my head slightly. I walked in the room and saw Noora there.

"Hi", I said.

"Hey, Isak", he replied.

"Where's your friends?"

"At the stable", Noora said. "I wanted to come here since I haven't been here yet. What are we working on?"

I showed her my unfinished clock. She frowned and tilted her head.

"What is it supposed to be?" she asked.

I huffed, acting hurt. "Really? Thanks, Noora."

She laughed. "I'm just kidding, Isak. Although you do have a long way to go before it starts really look like a decent clock."

"I know", I said.

We continued talking and I worked on my clock when finally Eskild and Jonas walked in. I fist bumped Jonas and he sat down next to me.

Eskild started explaining Noora what she should do, even though Eskild himself had no idea how to make a clock. Really, it wasn't that difficult. Eskild's clock looked even more horrible than mine. Jonas was doing good job and I could bet my left arm that Noora, the perfectionist, would make a beautiful clock.

Jonas nudged my shoulder. "Hey."

"What's up?" I asked.

He bit his lip and then looked at me, speaking quietly so no one would hear us. Granted, there was radio playing and Eskild babbling constantly so he wouldn't have to half whisper but whatever.

"About that other night...", he said. "Was it you who ran away from Chef?"

I did not expect that. I knew I should have but I still didn't. I had thought, or more like hoped, that he had forgotten waking up during the night when I sneaked back inside. Clearly he hadn't forgot and that explained why he had been looking at me weirdly lately.

"It was you!"

"Shh", I said. "No one can know."

He frowned. "But... who were you with?"

I hesitated. Should I tell him it was Even? If I say to him that we were just smoking he won't suspect something more happened, right? I felt stupid. Of course not, I hadn't given him every reason to start suspecting that I had something else going on with Even.

"It was Even", I admitted.

"Even?" he raised his eyebrows. "What were you doing outside that late with Even?"

"We were just smoking", I said casually. "Just... smoking."

Definitely not kissing. Jonas didn't need to know about that.

"Alright", he said. "When did you two become buddies?"

I shrugged and didn't answer because I didn't have an answer. Jonas frowned at me for a moment before shrugging. I was glad he let it go and didn't pressure me to answer him.

We took our sweet time working on our clocks because we still had two weeks and one day time to finish them, we didn't need to hurry. Time passed by and Eskild left and Eva came to take his place. She changed a few friendly words with Jonas and I was happy they were in speaking terms even though their break up hadn't been the world's easiest.

Suddenly the bell rang and I jumped. Was it really already lunch time? Shit, that meant I had to talk with Even. I was more nervous than what I cared to admit.

The lunch went way too quickly and before I even knew it, I was standing outside of the Great Hall, waiting for Even.

Everyone was already going to the music room for our practice which I now would miss and William will probably kill me. In my opinion, he stressed way too much about the practices.

I saw Even walking towards me.

"Follow me", he said, walked past me and headed towards the woods. I took a deep breath and walked after him.

He kept going deeper and deeper in the woods and it was somewhere where I hadn't been before.

"Even, if you're going to dexter me I swear to God..."

He laughed. "I'm not going to dexter you, Isak. You really shouldn't watch that kind of TV-series."

I ignored my urge to say him that don't tell me what to do and instead I said, "Then what are we doing here?"

He finally stopped and leaned his shoulder against a tree. I stopped too, about a few meters away and leaned my back against a tree.

"I told you, I wanted to—I needed to talk with you", he said, looking at me. I was having a hard time to hold an eye contact with him.

"So talk."

He sighed. "Okay. About that kiss—I mean, kisses--"

"I'll stop you right there", I said. "You don't have to say it, I know that you regret it and I don't want to come between you and Sonja and--"

He stepped closer and put his hand over my mouth. "Let me stop you right there."

I stared at him with wide eyes. He didn't move his hand away.

"I. Don't. Regret. That kiss", he said clearly and slowly. "You got that?"

He slowly took his hand off of my mouth and I hesitantly nodded.

"But you have a girlfriend and I..."

"You what?" he asked, as if like he was daring me to say again that I don't want to come between him and Sonja. He really wasn't upset about... anything?

"I—I...I don't know what to think", I finally said.

He stepped closer, hovering over me.

"You know what I think?" he said quietly.

I shook my head.

"I think you're scared to admit that you like me."

I pressed my lips together. "What makes you think I like you?" was the best I could get out of my mouth. It sounded stupid and it was stupid but there was literally nothing else in my mind.

He raised his eyebrows. "You didn't deny it yesterday."

I opened my mouth but couldn't say a word because Even grabbed me by my neck and pulled me into a kiss. I caught me off guard and my heart missed a beat.

He leaned our foreheads together and said, "Say that you like me."

I felt a bit dizzy from the kiss and didn't quite understand his words. "Huh?"

"Say that you like me", he repeated.

"Why?"

"I want to hear it."

"Why?" I asked, my eyes still closed, enjoying the way it felt when his nose and forehead were pressed against mine and his hand was on my neck, caressing gently my skin. It felt too good.

"Isn't it obvious?"

Did he... mean that he liked me too? Was that what he wanted me to understand? He didn't regret the kiss so maybe... maybe he did like me.

"I like you", I whispered against his lips and he kissed me again. I slipped my tongue in his mouth and sunk my fingers in his hair. He pressed me tightly against the tree and our bodies were basically morphed together.

Then I remembered Sonja.

I pushed Even off of me, panting. I tried to catch my breath. "You have—You... I can't. You have a girlfriend."

He stepped closer. "I don't care."

I held my arm out and stopped him, forcing him to keep his distance because otherwise I would just kiss him again.

"But I care", I said. "I can't... do this if I know you're with her."

He frowned. "Are you... jealous?"

"No! Maybe. A little bit." I shook my head. "But it's also wrong towards her. She doesn't deserve it."

"But, Isak--"

"I gotta go", I mumbled and pushed past him, heading back towards the camp. My heart was pounding and my head was spinning. I had done it. I had actually pushed Even away. I didn't know whether I should be proud of myself or not. I thought I was doing the right thing, but why did it hurt then? Why did I feel so sad?

I saw people coming out of the music room and noticed Jonas. I jogged to him and grabbed his shoulder, making him turn around.

"Hi", I said.

"Where were you?" he asked. "William was asking for you. You were supposed to rap today."

"I know, I'm sorry", I said.

"It's not me who you have to apologize."

I sighed. "I know. I will talk with William later."

Jonas looked at me, something in his eyes made me feel uncomfortable. "Where were you?"

"Nowhere."

He raised his eyebrows. "Nowhere? Why won't you tell me?"

"I was nowhere, alright!" I snapped. Of course I could've told him that I was out smoking with Even again but obviously I didn't thought about it earlier and now I couldn't take my words back.

"Fine, keep your fucking secrets", Jonas hissed through his teeth and walked away, clearly pissed at me.

Great. Jonas and I never fought and now I had managed to piss him off with my lies. Why did I have to ruin everything? But I didn't run after Jonas. I let him go and went to find Magnus and Mahdi. I found them walking towards the art room.

"Guys!" I yelled. They stopped and started smiling when they saw me. "Are you going in there?"

"Yeah, we are done with our paintings and are curious to see what we need to do next", Magnus said. "Also I heard Vilde is now there."

I sighed in relief when I realised I wouldn't have to see Even. "I will come too."

We walked in and Magnus went to show Vilde his painting about her while I continued sketching my work. It was almost done and then I could move on to paint it. I was rather excited but also worried how would I be able to do my work when Even would be around? Now it was easy because Vilde was there but what about then when Even comes back?

"She liked it", Magnus said as he came back. "Can you believe it?"

"No", I said. "Let me see it."

He handed the painting to me and I cringed. It was horrible. You could barely recognize it was supposed to be a human being, much less that it was supposed to be Vilde.

"She must be blind", Mahdi said over my shoulder.

"Thanks, guys", Magnus said and ripped the painting off of my hands. "You're assholes."

"Did she say what we should do next?" Mahdi asked, changing the subject.

Magnus nodded. "Yeah, we have to paint an animal which we think represents our personality the most."

"Oh", Mahdi said. "Well, Isak can paint a snake, then."

"Oh, fuck off", I said. "I'm not like that anymore."

They laughed and I rolled my eyes, a small smile creeping on my lips. Despite everything that was going on on the island right now, with me, I was happy that I had my friends, even if they had no idea what I was struggling with.

I wanted to tell them, I really did but I couldn't find the courage. I kept telling myself that later, I'd do it later.

I just didn't know when that later would be. And really, was there anything to tell? I had pushed Even away and I doubted he would try to make a move on me again. He had let me understand that he liked me too but I doubted that he liked me enough to ditch his girlfriend and ran after me.

And that made me somewhat sad.


	13. Chapter 13

Mahdi and I had to drag Magnus out of the art room because he didn't want to leave when Vilde was there. Eventually he gave up and followed us outside. The sun was behind the clouds but it was still very hot and I felt a sudden urge to rip my t-shirt off.

"What should we do--" I was cut off when Magnus's phone buzzed. He had received a text message from Jonas, asking if Mahdi and Magnus wanted to come to swim with him.

"Hell yes", Mahdi said when he read the message over Magnus's shoulder. "Are you coming, Isak?"

I shook my head. "We had... kind of a fight with Jonas. There's a bit of bad blood between us right now so I think I will skip."

"What did you two argue about?" Magnus asked. "You don't usually fight."

I shrugged. "Nothing, really. It was stupid."

"Oh."

It was silent for a moment before Mahdi shrugged and said, "Alright, well, I guess we'll see you at the dinner, then."

"Yeah", I replied. "See ya."

They walked away and I looked around, wondering what I should do. I didn't feel like going to the stables but I also didn't want to go to the music room, I wasn't ready to hear William lecturing me for skipping the practice. Then I remembered; archery. I still hadn't had a change to get my fingers on a bow and arrows. I felt like that was something I should definitely try, so I walked to the yard and saw Chris handing out wooden sword to a couple of girls.

I walked closer. "Hi, Chris. Care to give me a bow and arrows?"

"Oh, finally! No one has asked that today", he replied and laughed. "Come, I'll show you what to do."

For the next hour Chris showed me what to do and I tried my best to repeat after him. I hit the target couple of times but most of the time the arrows flew way past the target and into the woods so that I had to go there and find them.

"How do you know all this? You know, about swords and archery and stuff?" I asked Chris.

He shrugged. "We had a training before the camp."

"Oh." I wanted to be a supervisor next year but I didn't know it required a training. Now when I thought about it, it made total sense.

"Go on, try again. Remember to breathe out when you shoot."

I did and this time the arrow hit the target straight in the middle.

"Yes!" I yelled lifting my fist up. "Did anyone see that?"

"I did", Chris laughed. "Good job, Isak."

"Thanks."

I was so excited that I continued practicing until the bell rang and it was time for the dinner. I helped Chris to clean the stuff from the yard and then I walked into the dining room with him, waving goodbye as we parted and went to our own tables.

Eskild was already there and soon after I sat down the table, Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus came. Jonas didn't look at me.

We got our food and then sat in silence. It wasn't the good kind of silence, it was really awkward. Magnus and Mahdi started chatting with each other but Jonas and I sat in silence. Eskild eyed us for quite a while until he finally groaned.

"Okay, what's up with the two of you?"

Neither of us answered.

"They had a little... disagreement?" Mahdi said vaguely.

"What?" Eskild asked. "You two? How's that even possible?"

"Ask him", Jonas said, motioning towards me.

"Isak?" Eskild asked.

I shook my head. "It's nothing."

"Nothing? Yeah, okay", Jonas said. "Good to know."

Eskild spread his arms. "Guys, whatever it is, can't you just kiss and make up?"

Mahdi and Magnus went quiet and Jonas and I glared our foods, both of us too stubborn to say anything.

"For God's sake!" Eskild groaned and got up. "I've had enough of you guys, bye."

Mahdi and Magnus glanced at each other and then they stood up too.

"Yeaaahhh...", Magnus said. "We are going to the kiosk."

They left too and Jonas and I were left alone. We didn't look at each other, nor did we talk. I glanced around the dining room. Everyone were chatting happily, laughing and joking and no one seemed to know the tension around our table.

No one except Even who stared at me, frowning. I flipped him off and got up. I left without a word.

I walked straight back to our cabin and sat down on my bed. It didn't take long until Jonas came and sat on his bed, staring at me.

"What?" I asked.

"You don't talk to me anymore", he said. "Ever since we came to this camp, you've been acting weirdly."

"I haven't!"

"Yes, you have!" Jonas yelled. "You don't talk to me, you don't tell me things."

"I tell you things", I defended myself.

He raised his eyebrows. "Like what?"

"I...", I couldn't come up with anything. "There's nothing to tell."

"Bullshit! Something is going on with you and you won't tell me what it is." He looked hurt. "Why? What is so bad that you can't talk to your best friend?"

"It's nothing bad!" I said. "I just... I don't--"

"You won't tell me about your secret crush. You go outside in secret to smoke with Even but don't bother to tell me or ask if I wanna join. You are distracted all the time and I just don't get what's going on with you."

I started to get really frustrated. "You don't have to know everything!"

"Oh, wow, thanks for the trust, best friend", he spat out.

"I didn't mean it like that", I said, trying to take back my words. "I meant that--"

"You know what?" he said, staring at me angrily. "Save it. I don't want to know."

"Fine."

"Fine."

I got up and left the cabin. I had no idea where to go but finally decided that the shore was the best option. Listening to the waves hitting the shore was always calming, right?

I walked to the shore and sat down on the grass, staring at the lake.

Jonas was my best friend and we told each other everything. Always. There was no secrets between us. But now things were different. I had lied to him and kept things from him but only because I didn't know how to tell him about Even. What to tell him. I didn't know how to tell him that I liked Even, that he liked me too but I had pushed him away because he has a girlfriend and I was trying to do the right thing which made me angry and sad and frustrated.

What I wanted the most was to tell Jonas everything. Ask him for an advice. Have someone there to back me up. But how? How on earth could I tell him? I wasn't afraid of his reaction, after all, he was my best friend and he wouldn't judge me but the problem was me.

It was me who had a problem with this. I wasn't okay with the situation. I am the one who can't admit out loud that I like a guy. Or clearly I can when Even demands it but to Jonas? It made me feel anxious. But I couldn't help but wonder if it would get easier if I would just tell Jonas about... well, everything. Would it make me feel better?

"Hello."

I jolted and pressed my hand on top of my heart which was racing like a horse. "Fuck! You need to stop giving me heart attacks!"

Even grinned and sat down next to me.

"How do you always find me? Are you stalking me or something?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Nah. I'm just lucky."

We sat in silence for a moment, he trying to reach my eyes and me trying to avoid them the best I could.

"I like you, Isak", he finally said. "In case it wasn't already clear."

"You do?" I asked. "Like, you seriously like me?"

Not that I hadn't already realised it on some level but I just really needed to hear it from his mouth.

"Of course. Why else would I have kissed you? Repeatedly?"

I gave him a small grin. "Well, when you put it like that..."

"I noticed you immediately when I first saw you", he said. I raised an eyebrow. "You just caught my eye and I thought, damn, he's beautiful."

"Quite relatable", I said before I could stop myself.

Even lifted his eyebrows and smiled cheekily. "What? Are you admitting that you have had your eyes on me since the first day?"

"...Maybe."

"Aww, Isak."

"Shut up", I said and attempted to push him but he grabbed my face and tried to kiss me but I pushed him away, sighing.

"Come on", Even groaned. "Don't do that."

"How many times do I have to say it to you during this day?" I asked. "You have a girlfriend therefore I. Can't. Do. This."

"You're asking me to break up with Sonja?"

I shook my head. "I don't want to tell you to do anything. I don't want to be responsible of that."

"But you won't kiss me either unless I break up with her. How's that making sense to you?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" I yelled.

"Just tell me what do you want", Even said.

I stared at him, trying to say something but the words wouldn't come out of my mouth. I shook my head and left him there alone. I walked back to our cabin but it was empty. I lied on my bed, head spinning until I heard the bell ring.

Groaning I got up and walked to the Great Hall. My feet felt heavy and my mind was a mess. I wanted to just curl up under the covers and sleep on eternity.

Six days on a summer camp and my stress level was higher than what it had ever been in school. How was that possible? Fucking Even. He had turned my whole world upside down and now I had no idea what to do with myself.

I sat on our table, nodding at Eskild, Mahdi and Magnus and ignoring Jonas who didn't even glance at me. Eskild rolled his eyes and sighed. Easy for him to roll his eyes, he had no idea what was going on.

We ate the supper and I accidentally made an eye contact with Even. He looked sad when he stared at me and I turned my eyes away, feeling this pain in my stomach. Was it always this hard to try to make the right thing?

Others left the table earlier than me and so when I got in the cabin, they had already brushed their teeth. I had to go alone.

I took my toothbrush and toothpaste and walked to the bathroom. I glanced at the showers but decided that it wasn't worth it, I was too tired. I started brushing my teeth, occasionally nodding at the guys walking in and out. When I washed my toothbrush and got ready to leave, I stumbled on someone's chest.

Of course it was Even.

"Why this keeps happening to me?" I muttered. Even was literally everywhere I went. How was that even possible? Everywhere I went, when I turned around, he was always there.

It was like he had some tracking devices or something.

We stared at each other in silence. He was clearly gathering his thoughts, wanting to say something. I knew what he was going to say. And I knew already my answer, it would be the same one I had given him already twice today. He just didn't seem to understand or accept my words.

"Look, Isak--", he started but I lifted my hand up, making him shut his mouth.

"You asked me what I want", I said, feeling completely and utterly done with the situation and I needed to get my frustration out, so the words just came out of my mouth without any control. "I like you. And I want you to like me. Just me and no one else. Am I selfish? Does that make me selfish? Because I'm trying to do the right thing here but you're making it pretty damn difficult."

"No", he said quietly. "It doesn't make you selfish."

"Then why do I feel like I'm the biggest asshole right now?"

"Why do you feel like that? Because you kissed me behind Sonja's back or because you blew me off even though I said I like you?"

"You kissed me first", was my simple reply. I didn't know exactly why I felt like an asshole. Maybe because of both of the things Even had said. Because I had helped Even to cheat on Sonja and because I had pushed him away when it was obvious he liked me and I liked him and only managed to make us both sad by pushing him away.

The whole thing was one fucking big dilemma.

"I did. And you didn't answer my question."

"Both. I feel like an asshole because of both of those things. I made you sad, I made myself sad and I'm pretty sure Sonja would be sad too if she would find out", I said. "So, yeah."

"Isak..."

I shook my head. "I need to go. It's almost ten."

Once again I turned my back to him and walked away, feeling like I had made a huge mistake but there was no going back now. Why did everything had to be so goddamn difficult?


	14. Chapter 14

Next morning I woke up before Eskild's alarm went off. I checked the time from my phone and realised I still had half an hour time to sleep, but the problem was that I didn't feel tired anymore. There was just way too much going on in my poor head. I didn't want to think about the conversation I had with Even in the bathroom because it just made me sad. What I did think about was Jonas.

The more I thought about our situation, the more I realised what kind of asshole I had been. I had been a horrible friend. I needed to fix things with Jonas. I needed to talk to him about Even and our situation because otherwise I would go completely mad. I needed to open up to someone. And that someone needed to be my best friend.

I lied in my bed wide awake until Eskild's alarm went off. I sat up and watched how everyone else slowly woke up. Eskild stared at me suspiciously.

"Why are you already up?"

"No reason", I said. "Just woke up and... thought about things."

"Like?"

"Just things", I said, shrugging.

Eskild looked suspicious. "Alright then."

We got dressed and headed to the Great Hall. I avoided, like I had been doing almost every day, looking at Even. I didn't want to know what his facial expression would be if I looked at him. Would he look sad? I thought I wouldn't be able to handle that.

Why did I have to like him this much? I had known him only a week, for God's sake.

When we were leaving the dining room I grabbed Jonas's arm, stopping him. Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild ignored us and kept going.

"Jonas", I said. "Come hiking with me, we need to talk."

"I thought we already did."

"Please", I said. He sighed and nodded and we went outside, heading towards the woods to the familiar path. We walked in silence for a while until I decided I had to open my mouth sooner or later and the sooner I would do it, the better.

"I don't know where to start", I confessed.

"You wanted to talk, so you better start talking", Jonas replied.

I took a deep breath. "Okay, first of all I wanted to say that I am so sorry for everything."

"Okay. Apology accepted."

"Thank you." I wiggled my fingers and didn't look at Jonas. "Second of all... You know how I have been acting weird lately."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "You think?"

"It's because of that my so called secret crush", I said. "Remember when I told you I would tell you when I'm ready?"

He nodded. "And are you ready?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. But I will literally go crazy if I don't tell someone about... this."

"And what is 'this' exactly?"

"That crush of mine... We kind of... had a thing but... I don't know. It's complicated."

Jonas stopped me and motioned me to come sit on a rock with him. I did and we sat in silence for a while.

"So your crush... It's not Emma, right?" Jonas asked.

I shook my head and took a deep breath. It was now or never. "It's... it's not a girl."

Saying it out loud felt good. I felt relieved. Like there was a weight lifted off of my shoulders. Jonas expression didn't change but he did seem like he was thinking very hard. I waited nervously what he would say.

"Is it Even?"

I didn't expect that. He caught me completely off guard.

"How did you...?"

"At first I didn't realise it but now... it's obvious. I should've know. A blind man could see it and somehow I didn't realise it earlier."

"Was it really that obvious?" I asked, shocked.

He shrugged. "I noticed you two staring at each other and sneaking glances. I thought it was because you two smoked together in secret but now I understand better."

"Wow."

"So, what's going on with the two of you?"

I sighed. "Well... he kissed me, I kissed him. He told me he likes me, I admitted I like him... then I pushed him away because he has a girlfriend and I don't... I can't do things with him when he's with her. So yeah. That pretty much sums it up."

Jonas was silent for a moment. "I... I think you made a right call. You don't want to be a homewrecker." He looked at me and gave me a small smile. "But if he likes you, he has to ditch the girlfriend."

"What if he doesn't?" I asked, because that scared me a lot. What if he stays with Sonja and forgets me?

"Well, what did he say when you said you can't do whatever you do with him as long as he's dating?"

I looked my hands, frowning. "He said he doesn't care. He kept pursuing me. He couldn't understand why I pushed him away. Yesterday... I opened up to him and left before he could say a thing."

"What did you say to him?"

"That I wanted him to like me and only me. And that I feel like an asshole for pushing him away, acting behind Sonja's back and all that."

"Wow", Jonas said.

"Yeah. Wow."

Jonas tapped my shoulder. "As I said, if he really likes you, he will break up with Sonja."

I sighed. "Yeah. Maybe."

"You have done all you could", Jonas said. "You made it clear to him he can't have you both and that was the right thing to do. Sonja deserves better than you two fooling around behind her back."

"I know. It's just so hard to try to do the right thing."

Jonas smiled at me. "But it's worth it in the end. You will see. Just... don't give in, alright? He will make his choice and if he has any idea what's good for him, he will choose you."

I chuckled. "Thanks."

We were silent for a moment before Jonas said, "Man, for a moment there I thought you had a crush on me."

"What?! No, no. Hell no."

"What?" Jonas laughed. "That's rude, Isak."

I laughed too. "It would be weird. You are my best friend."

"Ditto."

We started to head back to the camp and I felt so much better. My thoughts were a tad bit clearer and I knew what I should do next; I had to stick behind my words and not give in. Even had to do something to the situation and I had no choice but to wait and hope for the best. I ignored the nagging feeling at the back of my head which tried to scare me by creating the worst case scenarios.

We made it back just when the bell rang and went to sit on our table. We greeted Eskild, Magnus and Mahdi. They looked relieved.

"So you two are good now?" Eskild asked.

Jonas and I nodded.

"Oh, thank God", Magnus sighed.

We started eating and suddenly Jonas leaned closer to me, whispering, "Twelve o'clock, hottie staring at you."

I lifted my eyes up and saw Even staring at me shamelessly. He didn't turn his eyes away when I looked at him but I did, looking back at my plate.

"Still staring", Jonas muttered under his breath.

"Don't look at him", I whispered back. I was glad Eskild was chatting with Magnus and Mahdi so they didn't pay attention to us.

"We are going to arts", Jonas announced to me.

My mouth dropped open. "You're kidding, right?"

"No. He needs to see you as much as possible so he will realise he's making a huge mistake if he doesn't chase after you", Jonas whispered.

"You're crazy", I hissed.

"Shut up and just roll with it", Jonas said. "Trust me."

I sighed and nodded.

We left the dining room and walked slowly towards the art room. Or more like I walked slowly and Jonas had to drag me by my hand in order to get me moving a bit faster so we would get there before the year changes.

As we walked in the art room I noticed two things. Emma talking with his friends and Even sketching. I don't know how he did it but it felt like he could sense that I walked in because as soon as I did he lifted his eyes up and looked at me. I bit my lip and followed Jonas to fetch our paintings.

I was very uncomfortable. I felt Even's presence all the time and Emma was glancing at me from time to time. The worst happened when I was just about to stop sketching and move on to painting.

"Isak?" Emma said as he came closer. "Can we talk?"

Fuck, fuck, fuck. "Sure."

We walked away from Jonas in the corner where we were more close to Even than what I felt comfortable with.

"Why did you leave the party right after we kissed?" Emma asked, not even trying to be subtle.

"I... um. Did I hurt you by leaving?" I asked.

"You shouldn't answer to a question with a question", Emma said. "And yes, it hurt me, I thought I did something wrong. But then I also got worried about you, thinking what could be wrong."

"Why didn't you come talk to me earlier?" I asked, actually a little bit curious about that.

"I thought you needed some space, I didn't want to push you. What happened? Do you have a girlfriend back home or why did you ran off?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't have a girlfriend."

She smiled, looking relieved. "Good."

Okay, I knew it was now or never. I had to do this. "Emma, I don't have a crush on you."

Her smile faltered. "Then why did you kiss me? Why would you lead me on like that?"

"I'm sorry. I just... I have a crush on someone else and I... I...", I couldn't come up with words. How to explain that I had got jealous and had just used Emma? There was no nice way to say it without hurting her.

Emma huffed, probably figuring it out on her own. "Fine, whatever, asshole."

She stormed away and I sighed. She was right, I had been an asshole and she had every right to be mad at me. I turned around and saw Even staring at me, his lips parted and eyes widened. I just knew he had heard everything.

I looked at him, then shook my head and walked back to Jonas.

"That went well", Jonas said.

"Let's go."

We left and went to find Eskild, Magnus and Mahdi. They were in the woodworks, doing their clocks. There was no one else in so we sat down and I sighed loudly.

"What's wrong, Isak?" Eskild asked.

I hesitated. Should I tell them? I looked at Jonas who nodded, encouraging me to open up. I bit my lip and sighed.

"Emma called me an asshole because I told her that I don't have feelings for her even though I kissed her and let her understand otherwise."

"Well... you can't really blame her", Eskild said. "I would have got mad at you too."

"I know", I muttered.

"Then why did you kiss her?" Magnus asked.

I looked at Magnus, Mahdi and Eskild who were staring at me, waiting for an answer. I took a deep breathe.

"Because I got jealous when I saw Even kissing Sonja", I blurted out without breathing in the middle. I stared at them, nervous.

Mahdi and Magnus's mouths were hanging open and Eskild looked like he would pass out at any second.

"You..."

"What..."

"You mean..."

"Full sentences, please, boys!" Jonas said.

"Are you gay?" Magnus's asked. "But you always hook up with girls!"

"I'm not gay", I said but then realised it couldn't be completely true. "Well, maybe I'm a little bit gay, but..."

"Holy shit", Mahdi said. "You and Even. How did I not see it coming?"

"Fuck that", Eskild said. "I if anyone should have seen it coming!"

"Guys...", I muttered. "Can you shut up for a second?"

They snapped their mouths shut and I sighed in relief.

"Thank you."

Of course, Magnus couldn't keep his mouth shut for long. "So... what's going on between you and Even?"

"Nothing. Nothing until he decides who he wants to be with", Jonas said. "Isak or Sonja."

Eskild frowned. "You are going to make him choose?"

I shook my head. "No. I didn't tell him to break up with his girlfriend. I said I won't be fooling around with him when he has a girlfriend. I pushed him away."

"But you secretly want him to break up with Sonja?"

"...Maybe", I admitted. "Am I a horrible person? Am I selfish?"

They all shook their heads.

"You know, sometimes it's okay to be a little bit selfish, though", Eskild said.

"You think?" I asked.

He nodded and then we sat in silence, everyone trying to progress what we had just talked about. I knew it was a lot to take in but I was proud how my friends were handling all of this. I couldn't ask for a better friends.

"I can't believe it. You of all people fell for a guy!" Magnus suddenly groaned, looking so shocked I might have laughed if the situation had been different.

"I can see why, though. He's a good looking guy", Mahdi commented.

I slapped both of them in the head.


	15. Chapter 15

When Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild finally got over their shock, we continued working on our clocks and they just couldn't keep their mouths shut.

"So, have you and Even kissed?" Magnus asked.

"Of course they have!" Eskild said and turned to look at me. "Right?"

I sighed and nodded.

"What was it like?" Magnus asked.

"Was it better than kissing girls?" Mahdi asked.

I groaned.

"Yeah, sure", I said. "You should try it sometime."

They all laughed at me and I rolled my eyes.

"Thanks but I think I'll leave it to you", Magnus said. "I have my eyes on Vilde, anyway."

"You are never going to get her", Eskild said, raising an eyebrow.

Magnus glared at him. "Thanks for the support."

"But it's true! Vilde slapped you last year, remember?"

"Because I was being rude for trying to just kiss her out of the blue."

"And you think this year she has changed her mind?"

Magnus shrugged. "Maybe."

"If Isak managed to get Even then you can get Vilde", Mahdi said.

I lifted my hands up. "Wow, wow, wow. First of all, I haven't got Even, remember? Second of all, just what the fuck was that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, have you seen that guy, Isak?" Mahdi said. "He's waaay out of your league."

"What?!" I exclaimed. "You're kidding me, right?"

"Maybe, I don't know."

"Eskild? Is Even out of my league?" I asked, turning to look at my friend.

Eskild shrugged. "I mean... he is quite something."

I sunk down on my seat and crossed my arms. "Great. Thanks, guys."

Jonas patted my shoulder and smiled at me.

"Don't worry", he said. "He likes you, you've basically won already."

I sighed. "I guess."

Of course, that meant nothing if Even doesn't come after me. If he doesn't clear things up with Sonja. Then his words wouldn't mean a thing. Then it wouldn't matter whether he liked me or not if he wasn't going to make a move on me again.

The bell rang just then, making me snap out of my thoughts. We got up and went for the dinner. People walked in slowly and it felt like forever until everyone was in. I was starving and waited impatiently that Even's table would stand up and fetch the food first.

I looked at my friends and each and everyone of them was glancing at Even all the time, and then whispering to each other and glancing at him again. Technically I understood them, they probably saw Even with completely new eyes but Jesus Christ, could they at least try to be subtle?

When Even walked past us he's arm brushed against mine and I tensed, holding my breath. Jonas poked my ribs.

"Act normal, for God's sake", he hissed through his teeth.

"You are one to talk", I hissed back and glared at my friends. "Y'all need to stop being so goddamn obvious."

"But he's staring at you all the time!" Mahdi said.

"Seriously, Isak", Magnus said. "He's like a lovesick puppy."

"A very cute lovesick puppy", Eskild added.

I narrowed my eyes at him and he lifted up his hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright, no need to get jealous", he said and grinned. "Although jealousy suits you."

"Shut up", I said quickly when I saw Even walking back towards his table. He passed us and we all sat in silence, our mouths firmly pressed shut. I couldn't help but think that we were being so obvious Even must have realised we were talking about him. I glanced at him and saw him staring at me, looking rather amused.

Yep, he definitely had noticed we were talking about him.

Damn it.

We got up to get our food and then sat back to our table. We avoided the previous topic and instead we talked about what we should do after dinner.

"I think we should go fetch our wallets and go to the kiosk", Magnus said. "I need me some sweets."

"Agreed", Jonas said. "Then we could go back to the cabin and play cards and talk shit."

"And here I thought we would be going to watch the sunset", Eskild sighed.

"Hell no", Mahdi said. "That's lame."

"You just can't appreciate the beauty of it", Eskild shot back.

"What do you think, Isak?" Jonas asked.

I raised my eyebrows. "Wow, someone is actually asking my opinion."

"I can take that back", Jonas said.

I shook my head. "Fine, fine. Let's go to the kiosk. We should go now so we can get there before everyone else."

We got up and went quickly to our cabin to fetch our wallets and then we made our way to the kiosk.

"I can't believe how Even couldn't take his eyes off of Isak", Magnus said. "That's siiiick."

"He's so whipped", Jonas said. "I bet it won't take long until he comes running after you."

"And I love you baby and if it's quite alright I need you baby to warm the lonely nights", Magnus started singing and Jonas, Mahdi and Eskild joined him, wrapping arms around each other's shoulders.

"I love you baby, trust in me when I sayyyy, oh pretty baby, don't bring me down, I pray, oh pretty baby, now that I've found you, stay and let me love you, baby, let me love youuuu."

"ALRIGHT, GUYS!" I yelled. "That's quite enough!"

They started laughing and barely managed to stay on their feet. I rolled my eyes at them and walked in the front, being the first one to step inside the kiosk.

"Hi, Mrs. Downhill", I greeted the older lady behind the counter.

"Oh, it's you, Isak", she said. "How have you been?"

My friends stepped inside too. I smiled at her.

"Just fine, how about you?"

She nodded at my friends and then said, "I'm fine, happy to be here on the island again." She raised her eyebrows at me. "I heard you have a secret crush this year."

I swallowed. The news really travelled fast on this island. I wondered when Chef would come to ask me about my goddamn crush. Why was it so big deal? For fuck's sake.

"Don't worry, dear", she said. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

I forced out a smile and moved to look at the shelves, trying to decide what I wanted to buy. Finally I just decided to take Coca Cola and chocolate while Magnus and Mahdi took so much candy and chips they could barely carry them to the counter.

We left the kiosk and as soon as we stepped outside I had to stop because otherwise I would have walked straight against Even's chest. My friends walked past me and then stopped staring at me staring at Even who was also staring at me. It was a whole lot of staring.

Even smelled like a cigarette and God, I had never loved that smell so much. It made me want to drop my chocolate and Coca Cola on the ground and just kiss Even. But I didn't. I had to stay strong.

"Hi", Even finally said.

"Hey", I breathed out. I hadn't even realised I had been holding my breath.

"Come on, Isak", I heard Jonas say. "We got to go."

I glanced at him and then at Even who looked like he wanted me to stay. I bit my lip and pushed past Even. He grabbed my arm.

"Isak, wait."

"No", Jonas said and pulled me away from Even. "I think you have a girlfriend to get back to."

Even frowned and pressed his lips together and I looked down on the ground.

"I just want to talk with Isak."

"Have you ever heard the expression 'actions speak louder than words'?" Jonas asked. Even nodded hesitantly. "Then I suggest you start doing something to this situation before trying to come close to Isak again."

My eyes widened and I lifted my head up, looking at Jonas with a shocked expression. He ignored me and started dragging me away. Eskild, Mahdi and Magnus followed right behind me. I turned to glance at Even who was staring on the ground. I felt so bad for him.

"Why would you do that?" I groaned at Jonas. "Now he's never going to talk to me again!"

"I did it for you", Jonas said. "That got him thinking. He knows that we know and he knows that we are your human shield and he can't get to you before he has made his choice. Trust me."

I sighed. "Fine. Whatever you say. But if you're wrong I'm going to kill you with my bare hands."

"Wow. Love makes people violent."

"I don't love him, Jonas!"

He shrugged and I rolled my eyes. I seemed to do that a lot nowadays.

We walked back to our cabin and sat on the floor. We left the door open since it was so hot in the cabin. Magnus took out the cards, Mahdi put on music and we started playing. Eskild or Jonas won almost every time and it was starting to get annoying. Magnus, Mahdi and I teamed up in order to make one of us to win, just that we could see Jonas and Eskild both lose. It took many rounds but finally I slammed my cards on the table, jumped up with my fists in the air.

"YES!" I yelled. "I WON!"

Magnus and Mahdi stood up also, hugging me. "YOU WON!"

"WE WON!"

We started dancing to the music, chanting "we won" and laughing. Jonas and Eskild rolled their eyes at us but smiled nevertheless.

Suddenly everyone froze in place, the music stopped and they were staring behind me. I frowned and spun around, my eyes landing on Even who was standing by the door.

My smile faltered and I stared at him. He stared at back, biting his lip and then he looked down briefly before looking at me again. I bit my inner cheek and glanced at my friends. They were having a conversation with their eyes and then Eskild cleared his throat.

"SO, guys, we were supposed to go see that sunset."

"Oh, right."

"Yes, the sunset. Right."

"Let's go."

Even stepped aside as my friends walked through the door and away. I stood in the middle of the room, nervous and lost but also wondering that did my friends know that the sun wouldn't set for an other hour.

Even stepped inside and closed the door.

"Hi", he said quietly.

"Hi."

He wiggled his fingers nervously and looked down for a moment before facing me again. "I heard your conversation with Emma. You're... still into me?"

I sighed. "Even... It doesn't just disappear even though I pushed you away. But I still stand behind my words--"

"I broke up with Sonja."

I froze in place, my mouth open. "What?"

"I broke up with Sonja", he repeated.

I stared at him and then... then I just acted by my instinct. I took a huge leap forward and he mirrored me, our bodies collapsing against each other and our lips smashing together. I put my hand on his neck and pulled him even closer if that was even possible. His hands were on my hips, pushing me towards the bed. Our tongues were having a battle of their own while Even's hands slipped under my shirt and lifted it.

We pulled apart just long enough for us to pull our shirts off and then we pressed our bodies together again. I shivered when I felt his naked chest against mine. I sunk my fingers in his soft hair and we collapsed on my bed. Even was on top of me, pressing every inch of our bodies together.

I couldn't help but moan when he kissed my neck and bit it slightly. I could feel him grin against my skin and I wanted to slap him but instead my fingers travelled up and down his back and to his hips, making him press our lower parts even tighter together.

"Guys, if you could be so kind and not fuck in our cabin?"

We pulled apart staring at each other in a shock when we heard Eskild's voice coming through the door. When I recovered from my shock I leaned against my elbows while Even sat on top of me, his head hanging low because there was a bed on top of us thus making the space around us very limited.

"Eskild!" I yelled. "Are you eavesdropping?"

"...No."

"ESKILD!"

"In my defence, Mahdi, Magnus and Jonas are here too!" he yelled through the door. "Is it safe to enter, I really need my phone."

I sighed and sunk back down on the bed, rolling my eyes. "Yeah, come in."

Even crawled next to me and put his hand on my chest and buried his head on my neck.

The door opened and Eskild stepped inside, his hand covering his eyes.

"Could you guys navigate me to my bag?" he asked.

"Eskild, you don't have to cover your eyes", I said, drawing circles on Even's back while he still had his face pressed against my neck. He was smiling.

Eskild peeked through his fingers and I raised my eyebrows at him.

"Oh, good, you're just shirtless."

He took his phone and walked back to the door where Mahdi, Magnus and Jonas were peeking inside, literally giggling like little girls.

By the door Eskild stopped and turned around to look at us.

"Seriously, though. Don't have sex in here", he said.

"OUT!" I yelled and he grinned once before slipping out of the door and closing it behind him.

A silence filled the cabin but it was a good kind of silence. It was comfortable and I could just concentrate on Even pressed against my body and on his soft skin and how he sometimes shivered when I moved my fingers across his back.

He lifted his head up and looked at me, tapping my chest with his fingers. "That was a second time we got rudely interrupted."

I laughed. "Bad timing."

"Tell me about it." Even rolled on top of me. "Damn, you look hot."

I lifted my hand up and caressed his cheek before grinning. "And you're still heavy."

He laughed and lifted himself on his hands so that he was hovering on top of me. "You're so rude."

I smiled at him and lifted my hands on his hips, pulling him back down, against my skin.

"I didn't tell you to move, though", I whispered against his lips and kissed him gently. He smiled in the kiss and pulled back.

"We are going to miss the supper", he muttered, his eyes half closed.

I pulled his lips back to mine. "I don't care."

He kissed me back and then pulled away again, looking me into eyes.

"You know, for a moment there I was afraid Jonas would kick me out", he said. "He was quite intimidating back at the kiosk."

I raised my eyebrows, amused. "What? Jonas? Nooo, he's a puppy." I smiled when Even put his both hands in my hair, playing with it. "I'm happy they didn't kick you out."

"I'm happy too", Even said.

Then I remembered the reason why Even had come and I bit my lip, eyeing him carefully.

"How... how did Sonja take it?" I asked. "When you said you want to break up with her?"

Even sighed and rolled away from me to my side, pulling me closer and wrapping his arm around me. I wrapped my arm across his stomach and laid my head on his chest.

"I just ended a four year relationship, how do you think she took it?"

My eyes widened and I lifted my head up, looking at Even. "Four years!? I... I pushed you to break a four year relationship."

"No, you didn't. I would have done it sooner or later anyway", Even said, forcing me to press my head back down on his chest. "It wasn't working out. I guess I just had to do it sooner because there's this really hot guy I like..."

I pressed my face against his soft skin and smiled. He was such a sap and I couldn't stop smiling. Everything he said made me smile or blush and I felt so embarrassed. Why did he have such an effect on me? Why was he so goddamn perfect?

We lied on my bed, not really talking but just cuddling, drawing patterns on each other's skins and occasionally sharing a few slow, gentle kisses. It made my heart flutter every time his lips touched mine ever so gently.

It was nice not to talk, we had talked enough for the past few days about not so pleasant things and I rather enjoyed to just finally lie down on the bed with him and not talk about anything.

I jolted when I heard a knock on the door.

"Guys?"

"What, Eskild?"

"Chef was quite unpleased when you two missed the supper. I told him you both were feeling a bit sick so you decided to skip it."

I looked at the door. "Why are you not coming in?"

"You might want to put your shirts on because Magnus has his camera turned on on his phone."

"Freak", I muttered and sighed. Even took a hold of my chin and kissed me once before pushing me gently.

"Get up. I need to go anyway", he said. "After all, I have kids to supervise."

I sighed again and got up. We pulled our shirts on and then the door opened and my friends stepped inside.

Everyone except Eskild were grinning and not even trying to hide it.

"Hi, boys", Jonas said. "Had fun?"

"Piss off", I replied. I pulled Even out of the door with me and closed the door. I looked around but didn't saw anyone.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow", he said, looking down at me.

I nodded. "Yeah."

He smiled and bent down, lifting his hand on my neck and pulled me into a kiss. I opened my mouth and slipped my tongue in his mouth. He pulled my body closer and squeezed me tightly before stepping away.

"Goodnight, Isak."

"Goodnight, Even."

He walked away and I stood there, watching him go. A smile appeared on my face and I couldn't get it off no matter how hard I tried so I just stood there, smiling like an idiot until someone opened the door and pulled me back in.

The boys pulled me in every direction, everyone trying to get to face to face with me and ask details of what happened.

I pushed them all off of me.

"I'm not telling you anything", I announced.

"You have a hickey", Jonas pointed out, poking my neck. I hissed in pain and lifted my hand to cover my neck, realising that Jonas was right.

Goddamn it, Even.


	16. Chapter 16

I woke up when I heard rain drops hitting the roof of our cabin. I opened my eyes and rubbed them, yawning. Suddenly I remembered yesterday and that it hadn't be just a dream. I sat up, wide awake and a smile appeared on my lips. Even and I. He had actually broke up with his girlfriend and walked on my door, ready to kiss the hell out of me.

The happiness filled me and I was immediately full of energy so I got out of the bed and pulled a shirt and shorts on. I checked the time and decided that my friends could wake up a little bit earlier today.

"Wakey, wakey!" I yelled, clapping my hands and walking in circles on the floor. "Time to get up!"

"Alarm hasn't went off yet", Eskild mumbled.

"Shut up, Isak", Jonas said and rolled on his stomach, yawning.

"WAKE UP!" I yelled. "It's a beautiful day!"

Magnus groaned. "It's raining, for fuck's sake!"

"Small, unimportant details", I said.

"Remind me to never let you be alone with Even ever again", Eskild said. "It makes you way too happy."

"Don't kill my mood", I said, smiling widely.

"Whatever", Eskild said and sat up. "God, I hate you right now."

Slowly they all got out of their beds, mainly because I kept making so much noise that they couldn't sleep anymore. I waited impatiently that they got dressed and then we went to brush our teeth and after taking our toothbrushes back to the cabin and sitting there for a while, looking for our hoodies, we went to the Great Hall.

We had to run so that we wouldn't get completely soaked. But I was so happy that I actually liked the rain today, I didn't mind at all that it was pouring and the sky was dark.

I saw Even when we were walking inside the dining room. I left my friends and jogged next to him.

"Morning", I said.

"Hi, Isak", he said and smiled.

I opened my mouth to say something but then we passed Chef's table and he stopped us.

"So, you guys are feeling better now?" he asked. "You at least look fine."

We nodded simultaneously.

"Much better", I said. "Sorry for missing the supper yesterday."

He shrugged and dismissed us with a wave of a hand. We walked to our tables and I felt Even tapping slightly my arm before he parted from me and sat down on his table.

I made sure that I sat in a place where I could watch Even. The whole time we were eating I ignored what my friends were talking and just stared at Even, mainly because I just couldn't turn my eyes away.

He looked so good, so hot. He was talking with the boys on his table and they were laughing at something. I couldn't hear anything, I was so distracted by the way Even's face looked when he laughed that I heard nothing of what was going on around me.

Suddenly Even's eyes turned on me and I blushed, knowing I was caught staring. He raised his eyebrows at me and smirked. I blushed even harder and looked down, smiling like an idiot.

When I saw him getting up and leave, I quickly turned to my friends.

"I'm gonna go", I said.

They looked at Even walking away and raised their eyebrows.

"Oi, shut up", I said, and got up, putting away my dishes and then rushed after him.

He was almost outside when I stopped next to him.

"Hi", he said.

"Hi", I breathed out.

He looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "Wanna come to arts with me?"

"Uh-huh", I nodded and bit my lip. I wanted to kiss him more than anything but I didn't dare, someone could see us. People were already walking out of the dining room.

We ran through the rain to the art room and I pushed my curls out of my face as we stepped inside. I took my hoodie off and fetched my sketch. I took a place close to Even and then started painting.

People get coming in and out but I stayed, talking with Even about my painting and he kept giving me great tips regarding to the colours and techniques. I loved his passion towards arts. It made him so... real.

I happened to just look up when Emma walked in. Our eyes met and she froze in place, stood there for a couple of seconds before turning around and leaving.

Even and I glanced at each other and then I shrugged; I had tried to apologise to her and she hadn't accept it. There was only so much I can do.

"I was wondering", Even said with a low voice, "if you'd like to come to swim with me after the practice? Only if it stops raining, of course."

I stared at him and every inch of his face as he looked at me waiting for an answer.

I nodded. "Yes. I'd love to."

A wide smile appeared on his face and it made me happy to know that it was because of me. I loved making him happy. I loved seeing him smile.

When the bell rang people started slowly made their way towards the Great Hall and I walked next to Even, our arms brushing each other from time to time. Before we stepped inside the dining room he grabbed my hand, squeezed it and then let go.

Both of us walked to our tables, he looking chill and collected, me looking like an idiot for smiling so widely and glancing at him all the time. I was like a little girl with a crush and it was embarrassing.

"Chill, dude", Jonas said. "Everyone will realise what's going on if you don't contain your fond."

"What did he do to you yesterday?" Mahdi asked. "Wait, no. Forget I said that, I don't wanna know."

I rolled my eyes and turned my eyes away from Even. "You guys are horrible."

"You look way too happy", Magnus said. "I might be a little bit jealous."

"You'll get Vilde eventually", I said to him.

He scoffed. "Now you say that when you got your guy."

I grinned and didn't answer. I just glanced at Even who must have felt it because he turned to look at me and winked before returning his attention back to what Joakim was talking.

When I looked outside I saw that the sky had cleared up and the sun was shining. I couldn't help but wonder that even mother nature wanted Even and I to hang out.

After lunch my friends and I went to the practice. William pulled me aside and gave me a lecture of skipping the practice the other day. I apologised to him and promised it wouldn't happen again. He sighed and forgave me. Then we started our practice. It was the first time I rapped my part and it wasn't exactly horrible. In fact, it went pretty good, considering the lyrics were only temporary. Even gave me a thumbs up at the end of my rap solo and I couldn't help but smile once again like an idiot.

When the practice ended, William clapped his hands and asked for everyone's attention.

"We won't be having practices for the rest of the week. We will start practice again at the start of our final week again. So rest your voices and all that stuff. Thank you, everybody!"

We clapped and then people started to walk out of the room. I felt someone standing close behind me and then Even whispered in my ear, "Meet me in front of the sauna."

He brushed my arm as he pushed past me and made his way through the crowd. I didn't bother to hurry, I knew he would be there when I got out. I went to our cabin and changed into my swimming trunks before walking to the sauna.

He was leaning against the wall and grinned when he saw me coming. I smiled at him and eyed him up and down, taking in his appearance. Being half naked suit him rather well.

"Hello", he said. "Are you ready?"

"Race to the water", I said and started running without a warning. He laughed and ran after me. I beat him easily and dived into the water. I got back on the surface and didn't see him anymore for a moment until he popped up right next to me.

"I won", I grinned.

"Whatever, cheater", he laughed and splashed water on me. I laughed and then heard talking. I turned to look at the shore and saw a few campers coming towards us. Great, so we wouldn't be the only ones swimming.

"Ignore them", Even said.

"You should be supervising the swimmers", I pointed out, splashing water on his face. "As I said, you're the worst supervisor I've ever seen."

"I am supervising, am I not?" he said, eyeing me up and down.

I turned my eyes down shyly and he took a hold of my chin and lifted my head up, looking me into eyes.

"You are cute when you get all shy around me", he said.

"Oi, shut up", I said, pushing him off of me. He just laughed and we swim further away when the other campers stepped in the water.

"You know what I just realised?" Even asked as he swam next to me.

"What?"

"I know nothing about you."

I looked at him. "Well, you can always ask me anything."

"Anything?"

I rolled my eyes. "Well..."

"When was your first kiss?" he asked.

"Anything except that."

"Come on."

I sighed and went under water. He took a hold of my hand and pulled me back on the surface. I wiped my hair out of my face.

"Come on, tell me."

"It's embarrassing", I groaned.

"I don't care."

"Fine." I looked away from him. "I was thirteen, she was thirteen. We were playing Truth or Dare and I got dared to kiss her."

"That's not romantic."

"I told you it was embarrassing."

He touched my hip under water and pulled me closer. "Look at me."

Hesitantly I turned my eyes on him and realised how close we were.

"Have you ever... kissed a guy before me?" he asked, looking at me curiously.

I shook my head. "Have you?"

"No."

I felt happy, knowing that I was somewhat special. I could feel eyes on us and when I turned to look a few girls were eyeing us. I pushed Even away from me, putting some distance between us. Even raised an eyebrow at me.

"Let's go under water on three", he said.

"What?"

"One, two, three!"

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and dived at the same time as he did. I kept my eyes firmly closed and then I felt his hands on the either side of my face. He pulled me closer and our lips touched gently. My heart skipped a beat and then I pulled away from him, popping back to the surface, trying to catch my breath.

Even popped up too and laughed, wiping his face.

"You suck at holding your breath", he said, teasing me. I narrowed my eyes at him, still thinking about his lips on mine.

"I do not!" I denied. "You surprised me."

"We can do it again, if you'd like", he suggested, a glint on his eyes. He was so sneaky. I glanced at the other swimmers but they were not paying attention to us anymore. And I also really wanted to kiss him again.

"Go", I said and dived. I opened my eyes and could barely see anything in the water. I barely saw Even in front of me but I moved my arms, sliding closer to him and pressed our slightly parted lips together. I felt his other arm on my chest and then we were going up and had to move away from each other before we popped on the surface.

He grinned at me and I splashed water on his face once again. He splashed water on me too and then we had a small water fight until we heard a voice calling Even's name.

We turned to look and saw Chris standing by the shore.

"Even!"

"What?" Even yelled back.

"Could you go to the sports? I can take over here", Chris said.

Even glanced at me and shrugged apologetically. "Duty calls." Then he started swimming towards the shore and I sighed, following him. I didn't want to stay swimming all alone. And I didn't necessarily want to be left alone with the girls who were eyeing us as we walked out of the water.

I walked back to my cabin while Even jogged to his to chance clothes. When I got in our cabin I saw Mahdi and Jonas changing their clothes to swimming trunks.

"Oh, we were just heading there", Mahdi said as he saw me enter. "You already done?"

I nodded. "Think I'm going to the music room. Where's Magnus?"

"Wooing Vilde in the art room", Jonas said, rolling his eyes.

"Surprise, surprise", I laughed and grabbed my towel.

Mahdi and Jonas left, waving at me and I changed my clothes. I left the cabin and walked past Even and few cambers on my way to the music room. Even was just showing them how to hold the sword correctly and I smiled to myself as I looked at him.

"Get it together, Isak", I muttered at myself and jogged the rest of the way to the music room. Instead of William, there was Eva this time teaching and playing with us.

I waved at her and she nodded at me, smiling. I made my way to the piano, cracked my knuckles and started playing. I still sucked big time but it was fun and I kept getting better and better each passing minute. Playing made me feel even more happy than what I was and that said a lot because I was already feeling so unbelievably good. Things were great, everything was just... great.

When I got tired of playing the piano I joined the other kids when they were jamming casually, playing different instruments rather horribly.

Before I even knew it it was time for the dinner so I left the music room and went to the dining room. Magnus was already there with Eskild at our table. I sat next to Eskild.

"What's up, boys?" I asked.

"Vilde fell in love with my sketch of a cat", Magnus said.

"Wait what?"

"Vilde--"

"No, no", I interrupted. "Why would you sketch a cat? I thought the idea was to paint something that represented our personalities?"

"Well, she likes cats so...", Magnus scratched his neck. "So yeah."

"I've said this before and I say it again; you're hopeless", I said, shaking my head.

"I know, right?" Eskild sighed. "And the sketch is awful, you can barely tell that it's a cat."

"Just wait until he paints it", I said. "Then it will be even worse."

Magnus glared at us. "THANK YOU, GUYS."

We started laughing and that's when Jonas and Mahdi walked over and sat down.

"What's so funny?" Jonas asked.

Eskild told them and Jonas shook his head while Mahdi laughed. I looked at my friends and felt this huge happiness floating inside me, filling every part of my body. I felt so grateful.

"Alright, enough about mocking me", Magnus said. "Should we go see the movie tonight?"

I didn't answer because Even walked in and I was too busy watching him walk to his table with Joakim.

"Isak!"

I turned my eyes on Magnus. "What?"

"Now who's hopeless?" he said, raising an eyebrow at me. "I asked you that do you want to come watch the movie with us?"

"What is the movie?" I asked. "It depends on that."

"Neighbors", Eskild said.

"Um... that Zac Efron movie? The funny one?"

"Have you seen it?" Eskild asked.

I shook my head. "No but I heard it's good."

"So you are coming?" Magnus asked.

"Sure", I said. "Why not?"

They proceed to talk about how we should go there straight after dinner so we can get the best seats, even though we would have to wait for quite a while before the movie would start. I didn't participate in that conversation because it was whatever to me.

When we were done eating we went quickly to the cabin to change more comfortable clothes and then to the Great Hall and in the room where we had been divided to our groups. There were seats, sofa and a few bean bags. I took one of the bean bags and kicked Jonas away when he tried to sit next to me.

"Mine", I said and he rolled his eyes and took the other bean bag. Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild conquered the only sofa in the room and we chatted until more people started sliding in. They took the chairs and there was about seven other people besides us. I recognised Sana and Noora, also Hans and Arnold and few others.

I saw Even walking in and towards me. He didn't hesitate when he plopped down next to me. Jonas raised an eyebrow at me but I flipped him off. I smiled at Even and enjoyed the warmth that surrounded me; he was pressed tightly on my side.

"Didn't know you're into comedy movies", I said.

"I'm not", he said and looked at me. "I'm here because of you."

I parted my lips but couldn't come up with anything to say so instead I just smiled, looking at his lips for a brief moment before turning my eyes away.

Soon when everyone was settled down Chef walked in and put on the movie. We stared at the screen as the movie started and it got dark in the room.

Halfway through the movie I felt Even sift and then his fingers slid across my hand. Shivers ran through my body and I bit my lip, keeping my eyes on the screen. He caressed my skin with his thumb and finally I couldn't take it anymore. I grabbed his hand in mine, intertwined our fingers and squeezed. I saw from the corner of my eye how he smiled and squeezed my hand back. He leaned his head closer and blowed air on my neck where my goddamn hickey was.

Once again shivers ran through my body and I turned to look at him.

"Stop teasing me", I whispered under my breath so no one would hear me.

"Make me", he whispered his face close to mine. I glanced at his lips and for a moment considered kissing the hell out of him but then I turned my eyes away and sunk deeper down and rested my head against his arm.

"Asshole", I muttered to him.

He chuckled and played with my hair. Luckily we were in the back of the room so no one except my friends could see us.

"You guys are disgusting", Jonas whispered to us.

I smiled happily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The calm before...


	17. Chapter 17

"I can't believe we have been here for nine days", Magnus said when we were having breakfast. "Oh, how the time flies."

"Twelve days to go", I said.

I found it rather amusing how much had happened in nine days. And how fast the time had passed. I felt like it was only yesterday when I came to the camp and saw Even for the very first time and now we were sitting in the dining room after sneaking a few kisses in the morning behind the corner of the Great Hall.

My eyes landed on Even and I smiled.

"Contain your fond, Valtersen", Jonas said.

"Trust me, I'm trying."

"You have to try harder."

"Chef coming", Magnus muttered under his breath. I turned my eyes away from Even and looked up, seeing Chef standing next to our table.

"Morning, lads", he said. "I need you to do something for me."

That did not sound promising. I wondered what he could possibly need us to do. I hoped it wouldn't be something horrible.

"What is it?" Mahdi asked curiously.

"I need the four of you to go to the stables, go horseback riding and then go around telling everyone how easy and fun it was because I heard the guys are a tad bit suspicious about going there."

A shocked look appeared on our faces. Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas were shocked and slightly afraid because they would actually had to climb on the saddle. I was shocked because I would have to see Sonja. I had no idea what to think about that.

But we couldn't say no to Chef. One does not just simply say no to Chef. So we all nodded hesitantly and he clapped his hands together, nodding at us approvingly. When he walked away, we groaned and sunk down on our seats.

"Come on, guys. It's not that big of a deal", Eskild said, rolling his eyes.

"I might die and you say it's not a big deal?" Magnus said.

"Stop being so dramatic", Eskild said. "I have done it and I lived."

"What?" I said. "When did you ride a horse?"

"Days ago", he said. "As I said, it's not that big of a deal."

"Huh."

We sat in silence, each of us trying to progress and prepare ourselves. I, mostly, had to prepare myself for seeing Sonja. Maybe I'd get lucky and she wouldn't be there. Maybe Even or someone else was there this morning. But, knowing my luck, it was highly unlikely.

Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas went to our cabin to change their shorts to sweatpants but since I was already wearing them I asked them should I wait them in front of the Great Hall.

"No, you can go to the stables", Jonas said. "We'll come right behind you."

I wanted to say that I'd rather wait them but then I decided that I'd have to stop being such a pussy. Sonja didn't know about me, there was no reason to stress about seeing her.

Yet I still did. What if she looked miserable? It would be awful to know that it was because her boyfriend had left him and was now kissing me instead of her. What if she was completely heart broken? She had been with Even for four years, after all.

I made my way to the stables and saw no one outside. I walked past the horses outside and inside the stable. I was just about to open the door when I heard voices coming from inside.

It was Sonja and Even.

"Why, Even? Why did you break up with me?"

"I told you, it wasn't working out!"

"You have someone else, am I right? Who is that girl?"

I held my breath, leaning closer. I knew it was wrong to eavesdrop but I couldn't help myself.

"It's none of your business, Sonja!"

"Four years, Even! We were together for four years and you threw it all out of the window because of some random crush!"

"It's not just a random crush!"

"I can't believe you're doing this to me again. Why, Even?"

I frowned. Again? What did Sonja mean with that. I felt my heart start beating faster. Had Even done this to Sonja before? Had he tried to break up with her before because he had had his eyes on someone else?

"I can't be with you."

"What's so special about her? What does she have that I don't? Huh, what?"

"A DICK, OKAY? She's a he, alright?"

A complete silence. I couldn't hear a word, all I heard was my pounding heart in my ears. Then it started again.

"YOU ARE GAY?! YOU DATED ME FOR FOUR YEARS AND NOW YOU TELL ME THAT YOU ARE GAY?!"

"I'm not gay!"

"You--"

"I'm not gay, Sonja! I just happened to fall for a guy."

"And you think that doesn't make you gay?"

"I don't need to label myself", Even said and I felt somewhat proud of him. But I also felt bad, partly because they were fighting and clearly the break up hadn't been easy and partly because I was still eavesdropping and I knew it was wrong.

"Yeah, whatever", I heard Sonja say. "I can't believe you're doing this to me again, Even."

"It's different this time."

"Yeah, we'll see about that."

Suddenly the door opened and I stepped back, staring with wide eyes as Sonja looked at me for a moment before pushing past me, looking so angry. I slowly breathed out and looked after her for a moment before stepping inside. I saw Even walking towards the wall and kicking it in frustration. He looked so angry, so frustrated.

I walked up to him.

"Even, are you okay?" I asked, and tried to place my hand on his shoulder but he dodged my hand. I frowned and let my hand fall back down. "Even?"

"Not now, Isak."

He walked away and I stood there, confused. What did I do? Why was he pushing me away? Was it because of his fight with Sonja? And speaking of Sonja, what did she mean when she said she couldn't believe that Even was doing this to her again? What did that mean? Somehow I got the bad feeling, but just then Mahdi, Magnus and Jonas walked in and waved at me.

I put on my happy face and decided I'd tell them later what I had heard. I walked over to them and greeted them. We talked for a moment and gave each other pep talks before walking out and looking for Sonja. She was brushing Stormy, the horse I had met when I first came to the stables.

"Shit, I forgot Sonja would be here", Jonas muttered.

"Are you going to be okay, Isak?" Magnus asked.

I nodded at them. They didn't need to know about the conversation I had overheard earlier. Not yet, at least.

We walked next to Sonja and she smiled at us but it seemed fake. Especially when I knew that she was not okay.

"Hi, boys."

"Hi, we are here to actually do horseback riding", Jonas said. "Please tell me we won't die."

She laughed. "You won't die, I promise."

Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas sighed in relief while I kept looking around, trying to avoid eye contact with Sonja because I thought it would be awkward. After all she probably knew I had heard everything.

"Well, let's get Stormy ready and we can start", she said. "You boys can brush him while I go fetch the saddle and the bridle."

The what? I had no idea what she was talking about but it didn't matter because she walked away, handing the brush to Jonas. He passed it to Magnus who passed it to Mahdi.

"Oh, for God's sake", I said and took the brush from Mahdi. "You're just a punch of pussies."

They showed their middle fingers to me and I started to brush Stormy. He was tied on the fence and he had his eyes closed. I brushed him calmly and just the way Even had taught me.

I remembered how he had placed his hand on top of mine and held it there a bit longer than what had been necessary. I smiled at the memory but then I remembered him pushing me off just a few minutes ago. I couldn't help but worry about him. I needed to talk with him as soon as possible, ask him if he was okay and what was going on with Sonja. I wanted to be there for him if something was wrong.

Sonja came back with the saddle and the bridle. She handed the saddle to me and motioned me to put it on on Stormy's back. I bit my lip and took the saddle, concentrating really hard so that I would get it right.

When I was done I took a step back and Sonja nodded at me approvingly. She started to put the bridle on Stormy's head and she explained all the time what she was doing and we stared at her with our mouths hanging open.

It seemed so... complicated.

"How does she do that?" Magnus asked.

"I have no idea", I said.

"It's so complicated", Jonas said.

"So many things to remember", Mahdi said and frowned. "I can never learn that."

"Come on, boys", she said. "It's not that hard. By the end of the camp you'll be able to do this with your eyes closed."

I doubted my friends would come to the stables often enough to learn how to put the bridles on horses's heads.

When she was done she took a step back, patting Stormy. "All done." She turned to look at us. "Who goes first?"

My friends took a huge step back, leaving me to stand there alone. Sonja raised an eyebrow at me and I shrugged.

"Yeah, sure, whatever", I said.

Sonja showed me how to get on the saddle and after a few tries I was finally sitting there, a horse between my legs. I felt like I'd fall at any second and I was holding on the saddle for dear life.

"Just relax, keep your back straight and push your heels down", Sonja said. "And remember to breathe."

I did as she told me to and straightened my back, pushed down my heels. I took a deep breath and tried to relax. I felt immediately more stable.

"Okay", I breathed out. "I got this."

Sonja took a hold of Stormy and started walking him around the field. I just sat there and tried not to panic. After a few laps I relaxed more and realised that nothing bad would happen and it wasn't, like Eskild had said, that big of a deal. Sonja stopped Stormy in front of my friends and told me how to get back down. I slid down and stumbled back a few steps before steadying myself.

"How was it?" she asked.

"Cool. Very cool", I replied.

"Look", she said and then lowered her voice. "I know you heard me and Even fighting..."

I didn't know what to answer. "Are you... okay?"

It felt weird to ask her that, considering the circumstances.

"I'm going to be fine. Me and Even... we are going to be fine. I will fix things. I... yeah, I know how to fix things. I'll be fine." She smiled but I didn't. I just merely nodded and moved away from Stormy. Jonas was the next victim and I stood with Mahdi and Magnus, thinking about Sonja's words.

What did she exactly mean when she said she would fix things? Surely she didn't mean she would somehow convince Even to get back together with her? I didn't even want to think about that option. Sonja had said that she knew how to fix things which only made me think that thing she had said earlier, about Even doing this again to her. Doing what? That was still something I wasn't sure about but if Even had done this, broke up with Sonja before, then it made sense why Sonja said she knows how to fix things.

Fuck. What was going on?

I decided I wouldn't make hasty decisions until Even has had a chance to explain.

"You alright, mate?" Magnus asked, patting my shoulder.

"I have to tell you guys something", I muttered back. I seriously needed them to back me up. I needed their advices.

"What is it?" Mahdi asked.

I watched Sonja and Jonas coming towards us and shook my head. "I will tell you guys later."

Jonas came back down and then Magnus stepped forward, looking rather nervous. Jonas came to stand next to me.

"It wasn't that bad", he said. "Don't know why I panicked so much."

"I... already told the boys that I have something to tell you. Later. Not now. But I need your advices and stuff. It's... complicated", I said to Jonas.

"Is it about Even?" Jonas asked.

"Kind of."

Jonas nodded. "Alright. We can talk after lunch."

I nodded. We waited until Magnus and Sonja came back and then Mahdi climbed on the saddle. He kept repeating that he will die and we laughed.

"We survived, you will survive too!" Magnus yelled when Sonja walked Stormy away. Mahdi sat on the saddle, looking like he would throw up at any second. Sonja walked only one lap and then she came back and stopped Stormy.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now", she said to Mahdi.

He opened them and groaned. "God that was awful, how do I get down?"

We laughed and when Mahdi was finally on the ground we asked Sonja if she needed help with something but she just shook her head and said we should go because the lunch would start soon.

So we left and before the bell rang we went around telling every guy we came across that we had been riding and survived. It felt silly but it was what Chef wanted us to do so we did it.

When the bell rang we went inside the Great Hall and walked to our table, greeting Eskild.

The others started talking about our experience with Eskild but I stared at Even. He wasn't talking with the boys on his table, he was just staring at his plate, eyebrows furrowed.

He didn't look at me during the dinner. Not even once.

I was starting to get really worried.


	18. Chapter 18

After the lunch we had our free hour since there wasn't the practice anymore. I rather enjoyed to have our free hour back, even though I knew we would start practicing again on our final week. But for now I wanted to enjoy it while I could. And the free hour also gave me the opportunity to talk with my friends about Even.

Eskild disappeared somewhere after the lunch so it was just me, Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus when we walked to our cabin and got inside. I sat on my bed and crossed my legs. Magnus and Mahdi sat on the floor in front of me and Jonas sat on my bed next to me. We sat in silence for a moment and I tried to gather my thoughts.

"Okay, then", Jonas said. "What did you need to talk about?"

"Well", I started, wiggling my fingers. "When I went to the stables I kind of overheard Even and Sonja fighting.

"Sonja was yelling at Even and demanding to know why Even broke up with her. Even wouldn't tell her and then she asked who is the other girl and Even kind of flipped and told her that it's not a girl."

"He confessed to Sonja that he broke up with her because of another guy?" Magnus asked.

I nodded. "And then Sonja started yelling at him that he had dated her for four years even though he was gay and Even was like, saying that he ain't gay and that he doesn't need to label himself."

Jonas nodded. "That's true, labels are overrated."

"Anyway", I continued, "then Sonja said something that still bothers me..."

"What?" they all asked.

"She said, and I quote, 'I can't believe you're doing this to me again'."

The lads were silent for a moment and I bit my lip, waiting for one of them to say something.

"Again?" Jonas finally said. "What does that mean?"

"I have no idea", I confessed. "I thought it might mean... might mean that Even has done this before, and by this I mean broke up with Sonja because of someone else."

"Would that be bad?" Mahdi asked.

I shrugged. "If he has cheated Sonja before... What if that's what he does? How do I know he won't do the same thing to me?"

My friends were silent and I sighed, rubbing my face.

"However, I decided I won't make hasty decision before I have had a chance to talk with Even", I said.

"Good call", Jonas said, nodding. "What happened next?"

"Well, Sonja stormed out and I went to see Even. He wouldn't look at me or let me touch him and when I asked him if he's okay, he said 'Not now' and just... pushed me away."

"Wow..."

I agreed with my friends. Wow. That was how I felt too. At least a small part of me. Most parts of me were fucking worried and afraid. Afraid that he would avoid me the next time I try to go close to him. What if he avoids me? What was I supposed to do then? I had no idea what was going on and I was already imagining how everything would go to hell.

Ah, I really needed to start thinking more positively.

"I think", Jonas said, "that you just have to talk with him."

"Ask what's going on", Magnus added.

I nodded my head in agreement. "He avoided looking at me at the lunch."

"Don't overthink it, Isak", Jonas said.

I sighed. Jonas was probably right, as always.

Soon the bell rang and our free time was over. We stood up and walked out of the cabin.

"Are you gonna go to talk with Even now?" Jonas asked.

I nodded. "Yeah. He's probably in the art room so I'll go look for there."

"We can go to work on our clocks, so come there after you've talked with him, alright?" Jonas said.

I nodded and then they walked away and I went towards the Workshop, got inside and headed to the art room. When I got in I saw a few familiar faces painting there, concentrated looks on their faces. Even was standing behind one girl I didn't know and was helping her out with her painting.

I walked closer and that's when he noticed me. He pressed his lips in a thin line and moved away from the girl, walking to his chair. I followed him and stood in front of him as he sat down and took his painting in front of him.

"Can we talk?" I asked. "Like, outside or something?"

Even didn't look at me when he said, "I really can't right now."

"Please? I think we should talk."

"I can't, Isak", he said, lifting his eyes up and looking at me. "Okay? I'm busy."

I felt how distant and cold he was and it made my heart sunk. I realised it was useless to try to get him to talk with me; he clearly didn't want to. He was avoiding me, just like I had been afraid of. But what could I do now? Nothing. So I just looked at him while he looked at anywhere but me. I shook my head and backed away. He didn't look at me when I walked away and I hang my head low as I made my way to see my friends.

They were almost ready with their clocks when I walked in and sunk down on the closest seat.

Eskild was singing along to some shitty song and doing his clock and my friends were sitting as far away from him as possible.

"So, how did it go?" Jonas asked quietly. I was rather certain that he could tell by my face that not well but he had asked anyway so I shook my head.

"It didn't", I replied. "He pushed me away. He wouldn't talk with me."

My friends frowned.

"That's... shady", Jonas said.

"Tell me about it", I sighed.

"Maybe he just needs some space", Magnus suggested.

I shrugged. Maybe Magnus was right. Maybe Even just needed some space to deal with... whatever he had to deal with. He clearly needed to sort out some things with Sonja and maybe he just didn't want me to get involved. I was feeling worried but I tried to tell myself that nothing bad would happen. Even would come around when he has sorted out his things. He couldn't avoid me forever, right?

Sure, I had no idea where we stood right now. Were we just casually kissing or were we something more? We hadn't had really a chance to talk about that and now things weren't so good between us, with Even avoiding me and stuff. I tried not to overthink it too much.

This didn't have to be the end, right? Even wouldn't just... ditch me out of the blue, I was almost sure of that. I wanted to be sure of that.

"Look, I'm done!" Mahdi suddenly yelled, pulling me out of my thoughts. I turned to look at him showing off his clock. It looked awful, but I wasn't one to judge, given how horrible my clock was. Or would be once I'd finish it.

"Jeez, man, it looks horrible", Jonas said.

"Have you seen your clock?" Mahdi asked.

"It looks better than yours", Jonas said.

I rolled my eyes. "Can we just agree that we all suck at making clocks?"

They thought about it for a moment before nodding.

"Yeah."

"Can't argue with that."

"We are losers."

"Mine is pretty okay, though?" Magnus lifted his clock up.

We examined it for a moment. It was almost symmetrical and that was something you couldn't say about my clock. Or Mahdi or Jonas's.

"You might be right", I admitted.

"It looks like it's done?" Mahdi said.

Magnus shook his head. "I'm gonna paint it but then it will be ready."

"Oh." Mahdi raised an eyebrow. "Shit. Should I paint mine too?"

We all shook our heads.

"There's no point", I said.

"It won't make it look any better", Jonas said.

Mahdi sighed and got up. "I'm gonna go show this to Eskild."

He walked away and we went back to work. When I finally finished my clock, Joakim walked in.

"Hi, Isak", he said and nodded at my friends.

"Hi", I replied. "What's up?"

"Nothing special", he replied. "Thought I should come finish my clock."

"Can we see it?" Jonas asked. I was curious too to see was Joakim's clock just as ugly as ours.

Joakim nodded and fetched his clock, showing it to us. Our mouths dropped open and we stared at the clock in disbelief.

"What the fuck?" Magnus yelled.

"How?" Jonas asked.

I shook my head, shocked. "It's amazing. How did you do that?"

Joakim shrugged. "I have made one before. At school."

We stared at him, not really believing that was the only reason why his clock looked like a fucking masterpiece.

He sighed. "And also my father is a carpenter and has taught me a thing or two."

"Ha!" I yelled. "I knew it!"

Joakim laughed and waved his hand, walking to sit with Eskild. Mahdi came back to us.

"What did Eskild say?" Jonas asked.

"He said 'well at least it looks better than mine'."

Magnus grinned. "Well, that's something."

We laughed and I lifted my clock up. "What do you think?"

"Definitely uglier than Patrick's in The Perks of Being a Wallflower", Jonas said.

"I know", I sighed. "That clock looks like a masterpiece compared to mine."

Jonas sunk down on his seat. "I will never finish this."

"You're just slow, you'll get there", I assured him. "You still have plenty of time before the camp ends."

He nodded and then we turned our attention to Eskild who walked towards us. He looked at our finished clocks and nodded his head approvingly.

"Terrible work, but you made it nevertheless", he said. "The next task would be making a chair and paint it. Do skulls, flames, whatever you can think off. The crazier the better."

We looked at each other and shook our heads.

"Next time", I said.

"Yeah, I think we have had enough for the day", Magnus said. "Anyone fancy going to sports?"

"Sure", Mahdi said. "You in, guys?"

Jonas and I nodded and got up. We passed Sonja on our way out. I pressed my lips together and gave her a small, awkward smile. She returned it and then I heard him say to Eskild that he should go to the stables.

Eskild walked out with us and then patted my shoulder. "See ya, guys!" He headed to the stables and we went to the field.

Chris wasn't there this time. Ingrid was. She waved her hands to us and walked over.

"What's up, boys? What do you fancy to do?"

"Archery", Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus said in unison.

"I can teach them", I said. "I'm basically pro."

Ingrid nodded. "Suit yourselves."

We fetched the bows and arrows and then I showed my friends what to do. They caught up really fast and soon we were having a competition who scored the most points. I won easily. Jonas was the second and Mahdi and Magnus had tie. They insisted taking another shots, just to figure out which one would win.

Jonas and I stepped back and watched how both of them shot once and Mahdi won. He grinned at Magnus.

"Not fair!" Magnus said. "The wind moved my arrow."

"Sore loser!" Jonas coughed under his breath.

Mahdi laughed. "How is it possible that you always lose every single game you play?"

Magnus sighed.

"I don't know, man", he said. "It's in my blood, I guess."

"Probably", Mahdi said.

"More like definitely", Jonas said.

"Come on, guys", I said. "Be nice."

We put away our bows and arrows just in time before the bell rang. I was happy that it was dinner time because I was starving. We walked inside the dining room, slowly because we were not the only ones going there. When we got to our table we sat down and soon after Eskild came.

"God, I'm starving", he said.

"Me too", I replied.

I saw Even sitting on his table. I tried to reach his eyes but he wouldn't look at me. He just... ignored me completely. I frowned.

I needed to talk with him. I really needed it, if only to calm down my nervousness. I hated being clueless.

We fetched our food and then ate in silence because we were all too hungry to talk. I stopped eating when I saw Even get up and leave the table.

I looked at my friends and they nodded towards Even who was almoust out of the dining room.

"Go after him", Jonas said.

"This is your chance", Magnus said.

"Make him talk with you", Mahdi said.

I nodded at my friends. Eskild looked confused.

"What's going on, guys?" he asked, frowning.

I looked at my friends. "You can fill him in, right?"

They nodded and so I got up, ignoring the fact that I hadn't finished my food. It wasn't that important. I put away my dishes and ran after him, almost knocking Emma on the ground as I went. I mumbled a quick sorry and continued running after Even.

I had no idea where he had went and I looked frantically around. Fortunately I spotted him walking towards the path that lead to the kiosk. Maybe he went there just so he could smoke.

I ran after him, yelling, "Even, wait up!"

He hesitated before stopping and turning to look at me. I run to him and tried to catch my breath.

"Even, what's going--"

"I don't really want to talk now", he interrupted me.

I frowned. "I know something is wrong. Don't push me away when things get complicated. Talk to me, please."

He groaned and turned his eyes away from me. "I need some space, Isak. Can't you realise it? I don't want to-- I can't talk with you right now, can't you take a hint?"

I felt hurt. I took a step back, looking at him, trying to act like his words hand't just hurt me and failed, because I knew the hurt was clear on my face. He stared at me, his facial expression not giving away anything about how he felt at the moment.

I swallowed dryly. "I... yeah. Alright. Space. Sure, okay. Take... take your time."

He turned around without another word and left.

I felt my heart ache in pain as I looked at him walk away.


	19. Chapter 19

I made my way back to the cabin, my shoulders slumped down and my head hanging low. I felt so sad but I had no choice but to suck it up. Even wanted and needed space and I had to give it to him. He would come around, I had to believe in that. This didn't mean the end. If it was another way around I would want Even to respect my wishes therefore I had to do it too. Space. That was all he wanted. I could give it to him. I could wait that he comes back to me.

I opened the door and stepped inside the cabin. Mahdi was lying on his bed, reading a book while Magnus and Jonas were sitting on the floor, playing poker. When I stepped inside they all turned their eyes on me and when they saw my face their smiles faltered.

"Didn't go well?" Jonas asked.

I shook my head. "He said he needs space."

"Oh."

"Yeah." I sat on my bed. "Guess I don't have a choice but to deal with it and wait that he's ready to talk."

"He will come around", Magnus said. "He just needs to clear his head. He just broke up with his girlfriend who he had been dating for a long time."

"Yes, I understand that", I said, biting my lip. "It's just... hard. I can't explain it. I just feel so worried and—yeah. I don't know."

I felt like there wasn't enough words to express how I felt. I felt frustrated but I had to calm down.

He. Just. Needs. Some. Space.

No big deal.

I could handle that. We were nothing serious, I shouldn't be so pressed about this whole thing. I should be chill and just wait and see what happens.

That sounded like a good plan. I nodded at myself.

Yes.

Be chill and go with the flow.

Suddenly my phone started ringing. I searched through my bed sheets and finally found it under my pillow.

It was my mum. I pressed the green button and lifted the phone to my ear.

"Hi, mum", I said.

"Hi, Isak", she replied. "Finally you answer my call."

"Sorry, I've been busy."

I stood up and waved at my friends. They nodded understandingly and I left the cabin, walking towards the lake.

"How's the camp? Are you having fun?" she asked.

I nodded until I realised that she couldn't see me. "Yes. We have had so much fun here. Just like every year."

"Good, good", she said. "Your father says hi, by the way."

"Is he home?"

"Yes, but he's just about to leave to the grocery store."

"Oh."

"So tell me, what have you been up to?"

I told her about our days on the camp and about the horses. She laughed when I told her about how terrified I had been when I first brushed a horse. I also told her about our upcoming performance, about the practices and how my clock looked awful and how we needed to do chairs next. I also told her that I had learned a little bit of how to play piano. She was proud of me and said that she wants to hear me play sometimes. I explained her about the archery and how I had quickly learned to shoot arrows in the middle of the target. She laughed and said that it's amazing how many new things I have learned on the camp.

"Have you met new people? Are you making new friends?" she asked.

I hesitated. Now was my chance to tell her about Even. I wasn't sure if I wanted to but then again, I had to do it at some point, right? I took a deep breath.

"Actually, mum", I said. "I have... met someone."

"That's nice, sweetie", she said. "What's her name?"

Okay, this was the hardest part. I was quiet, unable to from the words. She waited patiently until the silence got uncomfortable.

"Isak? Did I lost you? Are you still there?"

"Yes, yes", I said. "Um... the thing is... mum..." I hesitated again. I knew my mum was very religious and I had no idea how she would take it. For all I knew she could either be disappointed and not talk to me or she would flip out completely and say that I'm not her son anymore. Then again, those were all the negative things that rolled inside my head. What if she takes it well? That was a possibility and this was a risk I had to take. I had to tell her. I had already decided that without even realising it and now I couldn't go back anymore. "His name is Even."

The line went silent. The only thing I could hear was my mother's breathing. I bit my lip, waiting for some kind of reaction. Any reaction would be better than silence. Silence was the worst. It always makes it clear that you've disappointed them when they don't reply anything.

"Hold on, Isak", she finally said and I felt relieved that she didn't just cut the call and leave me hanging. I heard her yell goodbye to my father before returning back to the phone, taking a deep breath. "Okay. Um... I definitely need some time to progress this but you know that I love you, no matter what, right?"

I sighed in relief. "Yeah. I love you too, mum."

"So... are you two... together?"

"No, no. I don't know." I sighed. It felt weird to talk about this to my mum and I was sure she felt the same way. But she was trying and that was all I could ask for. "It's... complicated right now."

"Complicated how?"

Now I needed to come up with words but I had no idea where to start. There was so much I wanted to say and so many things I didn't want to say. It was complicated but if I wanted to open up to my mother I had to tell her everything. I needed to hear what she had to say about my situation with Even.

"Isak? Complicated how? Is something wrong?"

"I...", I swallowed. "He had a girlfriend. For four years. She's also here. And... he broke up with her because of me."

"Oh. That's... big. A huge step", she said. "I have a feeling there's more to this story?"

"There is", I admitted. Then I proceed to tell her about what I had heard at the stables and how he had started to avoid me. "And now he said that he needs some space."

My mother was silent for a moment.

"You have to understand him", she finally said. "This can't be easy for him."

"Yeah", I said. "That's what my friends said too."

"You should listen to them. They are smart boys."

I smiled. "They have their moments."

"So...", she said. "Will you tell your father about this... Even?"

"I was kind of hoping you'd tell him."

"I can do that. He probably will want to talk with you, though. But I can tell him", she said. "Don't worry, he'll take it well."

"I know", I said. My father wasn't as religious as my mum. He was really chill man and if my mother had take it this well then I was sure there wouldn't be any problems with my father. "Will you come here on the last day of the camp? We have that performance then."

"Of course."

"Don't forget this time", I said.

Last year my mum and dad had forget they needed to pick me up and I had to ask Magnus's mum to give me a ride back to home.

She laughed. "We won't forget."

My phone beeped. "Shit, mum. My battery is dying."

"Alright. Talk to you later."

"Yeah, sure. Bye, mum."

"Bye, love."

She ended the call and I stuffed my phone back to my pocket. I sat down on the grass and stared at the lake. I realised that I was sitting on a spot where Even had kissed me for the first time. I smiled at the memory. It was a good memory. It would always be a good memory, no matter what.

I felt relieved. Telling my mum about Even made me feel relieved. But I couldn't help but think if it had been a mistake. The fear that was nagging at the back of my head wouldn't go away. What if Even and I wouldn't work out? What if he would tell me that we can't be together? Then it would have been for nothing.

Or no. Sooner or later I would have fallen for some guy and then I would have had this same conversation ahead of me. So technically it didn't matter that I had told her now. She would have find out sooner or later.

But I was getting ahead of myself. I shouldn't be thinking about whether Even and I would work out. Our thing had barely even started yet and I was already stressing about would it work out. I needed to chill and roll with the flow like I had thought about earlier. Not overthink things and create more unnecessary stress to myself.

Be chill, I reminded myself.

It was just hard because I... I really liked Even. More than what one could think was possible, given that we had known each other for nine days.

Holy shit. Nine days. I had fallen fast. So fast it was actually quite scary.

Was it normal to develop this bad crush on someone in just nine days?

I sighed when I heard the bell rang. I wasn't that hungry but I couldn't miss the supper, Chef wouldn't like that. So I got up and started slowly walk towards the Great Hall. My feet felt heavy and I just wanted to go to sleep and forget this day for a moment. It had been a long and rough day.

Eskild, Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas were already sitting at our table when I stepped inside the dining room. Even's table was already getting up to fetch their food. I passed Chef's table.

"I almost got worried you might not show up, Isak", Chef commented.

I waved my hand at him. "Wouldn't miss this."

I sat next to Jonas and pressed my forehead against the table, sighing.

"What did your mum want?" Jonas asked and then lowered his voice. "Did you tell her about... you know."

I lifted my head up and nodded.

"How did she take it?" Magnus asked as we got up to fetch our food.

"Surprisingly well", I said. "She will tell my dad."

"That's good, right?" Jonas asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, it is."

We sat back down on our table and began eating.

"You missed the movie", Eskild said suddenly. "Almost half of the camp was there, it was so crowded."

"Seriously?" I asked. "What movie was it?"

"Deadpool", Jonas said. "God, I love that movie."

I looked over to Even over my shoulder, since my back was facing him, and he was talking with the boys on his table. He didn't look at me but at this point I didn't even expect that which was rather... sad.

"Was Even there?" I asked under my breath as I turned to look at my friends.

They all shook their heads. I nodded. I wondered where he had been and what he had been doing. Had he been he just lying on his bed, thinking about stuff or had he been smoking somewhere? I wanted to know so badly but I couldn't ask that from him.

Space, I needed to remind myself. You're supposed to give him space.

Suddenly I heard Sonja's voice behind my back.

"Even, can we talk later?" she asked.

I held my breath.

"Yes, sure", was Even's answer and I frowned. I looked at my friends who had also heard what I had heard and they leaned closer to me.

"Are you okay?" they asked, probably seeing from my face that I was not, in fact, okay.

I shook my head and got up. I walked away from the dining room and once I was outside I punched a wall with my fist and kicked a rock. Physical pain and mental pain filled me. I was so angry.

He wouldn't talk with me but he had agreed to talk with Sonja? How was that fair? Yes, I understood he needed space but it still made me angry that he would talk with Sonja but not with me.

I looked at my knuckles and saw bruises forming on them. My hand was shaking and I could feel the anger floating inside of me. This wasn't fair but once again I had no choice but to suck it up.

Despite my anger I still understood Even at some level. He had things to sort out with Sonja and it was totally understandable why he had to talk with her. I had no reason to get hurt. Yet I did. I couldn't help it.

Was it always like this when you liked someone?


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your patience! Sorry for keeping you waiting. I just needed a little break to think about what I'm going to do next and all that. Thanks for giving me my time. Here's a little bit longer chapter for y'all!  
> Hope you enjoy it. xx

"Isak."

"No."

"Isak!"

"No!"

"Come on", Jonas sighed. "Get up."

I didn't want to get up. I wanted to sleep and forget what was going on in my life right now. I didn't want to feel sad or frustrated or angry. I wanted to sleep peacefully and forget everything. But, as Jonas started pulling my covers off, I had no choice but to suck it up and get out of the bed.

When I checked the time I narrowed my eyes. "Why would you wake me up this early?"

Eskild's alarm went off just then and he groaned, turned it off and rolled on his back, continuing sleeping.

"You wanted me to wake you up so you can go to take a shower, remember?" he said.

"Oh, right." I had forgotten.

"So let's go."

"You are coming too?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Why not."

We took our towels and shampoos and left the cabin, leaving Magnus, Mahdi and Eskild sleep there. We were sure they would wake up on their own so we didn't bother to wake them up.

As we walked towards the showers, we didn't talk much. Both of us were still sleepy and we shivered when we felt wind touching our skins. It wasn't necessarily cold, just a little bit chilly. It would change when the sun would go up in the sky and start warming us again.

We took our time under the warm water because there was no need to hurry. We had plenty of time. By the time we got out of the showers we heard the door open and saw Magnus, Mahdi, Eskild and bunch of other guys walking in.

Jonas and I walked out, nodding at the guys. We made our way back towards the cabin, talking.

"How about swimming, should we go there after breakfast?" I suggested.

Jonas shook his head.

"No", he said. "We just showered."

"Right", I said. "What do you suggest, then?"

He thought about it for a moment.

"How about", he said, "if we go to make the chairs? Or start them, at least. It could be fun plus I have a cool idea what to paint on my chair."

I laughed. "Sure, why not. We anyway have to start now if we want to finish them on time."

I opened our cabin's door and we got in. I put my towel away and we got dressed quickly before heading to the Great Hall.

Dining room was surprisingly empty. Maybe everyone's feeling exceptionally tired today or we were just early. Either way there was only a few people besides us as we sat on our table.

Soon enough people started walking in and when Magnus, Mahdi and Eskild came the dining room was almost full. They sat on our table.

"I almost fell asleep in the shower", Magnus said.

"Why's everyone so sleepy today?" I asked. I felt relatively fine. Jonas seemed to feel the same way as me. He shrugged.

"Because last night it was too hot to sleep", Mahdi said.

I raised an eyebrow. "I didn't have any problems to sleep."

Eskild sighed. "Lucky."

Jonas and I laughed and then it was time to fetch the food. I kept my eyes firmly away from Even as he walked past me. I didn't dare to look because I knew he would look fucking beautiful and I knew it would just make my heart ache, knowing that I couldn't touch him or kiss him at the moment. I missed him, I realised. I really missed him. I didn't even know that I had become so addicted to him that I would actually start missing him when we were a few days apart.

We ate breakfast in silence and after we were done, Magnus, Mahdi, Jonas and I headed to the woodworks. Eskild went to the beach, waving us goodbye.

Chris was there to supervise and he nodded at us as we walked in. We were the only ones there at the moment so he told us basics and then we got a permission to start doing the chairs. As it turned out, it was much easier than doing a clock.

"I'm gonna paint it black", Jonas said. "And draw some guitars on it."

"Lame", I said.

"Well what are you going to do, then?"

"I haven't decided yet."

"Guys", Magnus said. "Guess what I'm going to do."

"Vilde's face?" Mahdi suggested.

Magnus rolled his eyes.

"No!" he said and then looked down on his feet. "I was thinking about doing different kinds of cats..."

"For God's sake", I groaned.

"Are you serious?" Jonas asked.

"You really think she will warm up to you if you make a cat chair?" Mahdi asked.

Magnus shrugged and I could tell by his face that he seriously thought so. Maybe he was so desperate that he had no other choice anymore. Our second week on the camp was almost over and that left us only one week. He was running out of time.

"Hey", I said. "If the cats are the way in her heart then what the fuck, go for it, man."

Chris stepped closer to us. "Are you talking about Vilde?"

Magnus blushed.

"You weren't supposed to hear that", he mumbled.

Chris leaned his shoulder against the wall and looked at us. I was curious to hear what he was going to say. Would he say the same as Eskild? That Magnus didn't stand a chance? Or would he just laugh at Magnus's face? Because if he'd do that I was ready to fight him. The only ones allowed to laugh at Magnus were his friends and Chris was not one of them.

"You know", Chris said, crossing his arms, "she just complained about being single the other day."

My mouth dropped open.

"Oi!" Mahdi and Jonas yelled.

Magnus looked shocked and he kept opening and closing his mouth, trying desperately to come up with some words.

"I—She—What?"

Chris nodded.

"Yeah, yeah", he said. "She complained in our supervisor meeting the other day that she hates being single, especially during the summer."

"Holy shit", we said in unison and patted Magnus's back, starting to give him orders and advices at the same time.

"Go look for her."

"Ask her to do something with you."

"Compliment her."

"Go and be nice."

"And", Chris said, "I can tell you that she and Eskild will switch spots about an hour before the lunch so..."

"So I can go ask her to come swim with me!" Magnus said and lifted his arms up. "Yes!"

Chris laughed and shook his head as we clapped at Magnus while he ran out and headed to look for Vilde. We checked the time and learned that soon she would change places with Eskild. We hoped Magnus would be able to find her before that and ask her to go swim with him. The whole idea kind of dies if she's already at the lake, swimming when Magnus finds her.

I stretched my arms just when a few guys and Sana walked in. She barely nodded at me, and I wasn't surprised. She was probably just as mad at me as Emma was. She was her friend, after all.

"Here's an idea", I said to my friends. "Let's go to the music room."

They glanced at Sana and then nodded, getting up. We waved at Chris before walking out and heading towards the music room. When we neared the music room I found it odd that it was silent, there was no music coming out of the room. And the door was closed. Usually it was open.

I glanced at my friends, they shrugged and I pushed the door open. We stared at William and Noora in a shock as they pulled their lips apart and put some distance between each other.

Had they really just been making out in the middle of the music room?

"Sorry", we said in unison and they shook their heads, Noora blushing like a tomato and William looking rather amused but also a bit annoyed by us. We had, after all, interrupted them.

There were no one else in the music room which was weird but it also, clearly, gave Noora and William a chance to snog.

"I...I think I'll go", Noora said.

"No, wait--"

"I see you later", Noora said, interrupting William and then she pushed past us, her cheeks pink. My friends and I grinned at her and then she was gone. We turned simultaneously our eyes on William who stared at us for a moment before groaning.

"What?"

"You sly dog!" Jonas laughed. "You finally got Noora."

William shrugged and then grinned. "Yeah, I finally got her."

We laughed and walked in the room, leaving the door open.

Noora and William had been shamelessly flirting for the past few years during the camp but nothing had ever actually happened between them. Noora had admitted during the truth or dare that she liked William and to be honest, it was about the damn time something happened between the two them. They had been flirting for far too long already.

I was happy for William.

Also, Magnus will be so jealous when he hears about this.

"So, what brings you guys here?" William asked.

I raised my eyebrows and looked around.

He slapped his forehead. "Oh, right."

I sat on the closest seat and eyed Jonas as he took a guitar and started playing it quietly, focusing. Mahdi took the bass guitar and tried to do something with it even though he wasn't that good but hey, he at lest tried. I looked at William.

"So", I said. "Are you two serious? Or are you just fooling around?"

William shrugged. "Noora's not really that kind of girl. The fooling around kind of, I mean."

"Yeah. So, serious, then?"

"I hope so", William said. "We haven't really... talked, yet."

"Wonder why", I grinned.

He flashed his middle finger at me and I laughed.

"Show them how you can play piano", William said, motioning my friends. I shrugged and stood up.

"Check this out, guys", I said and sat behind the piano. Jonas and Mahdi stopped playing and looked at me patiently. I played a little bit of Beethoven and stopped when I messed up the first time.

"That's pretty much all I can do right now", I admitted.

They clapped.

"That's really good, Isak", said Jonas.

"Didn't know you had that in you", said Mahdi.

"I'm a proud master", said William.

I thanked them and then Jonas and Mahdi wanted to learn how to play piano too so William explained to them, I demonstrated and then they tried, and failed, several times while people kept coming in and out until the bell rang and we headed for the lunch.

Magnus ran to our table, hair wet and a wide smile on his face.

"Guys!"

"What?" I asked.

"How did it go?" asked Jonas.

"So well!" he sighed and sat down between Eskild and Mahdi. "She came to swim with me and we had a competition that who can stand on their hands longer. She won because I can't hold my breath as long as she."

"Or did you just let her win?" Mahdi asked.

Magnus shook his head. "No, I seriously couldn't held my breath longer. She's like a mermaid or something. And I can hold my breath for a minute, so. I think it tells a lot about her ability to hold her breath under water."

"She's a badass", Jonas said. "What did you two talk about?"

"About this camp", Magnus said. "Her cats. Summer in general. I was very chill."

"Good!", I said.

"That's great, Magnus", said Jonas.

"I'm proud", said Mahdi and Eskild.

Magnus shrugged. "But not, you know, too chill, so she won't think that I don't like her. I was chill but not too chill."

"Oh, Jesus Christ", I groaned and we started laughing. Magnus rolled his eyes at us and then we got up to fetch our food.

While we ate the others talked with each other but I allowed myself a moment to stare at Even. A moment to think about him. This space thing wasn't fun.

He was leaning his elbows against the table and his hands were under his chin. He wasn't eating but rather listening what the boys at his table were talking about. He looked beautiful. I swallowed and licked my lips, turning my eyes away. I joined the conversation which my friends were having and pushed Even out of my mind. For now.

The dining room was almost empty when we got up and were about to leave because it was the start of our free hour. As I stepped out of the dining room behind my friends, someone grabbed my hand and pulled me aside. I saw my friends walk away unaware that I wasn't following them anymore and turned my eyes on the person who had stopped me, eyebrows furrowed.

It was Vilde.

"Hi, Isak, can I ask you a favour?"

She was holding a box in her arms and looking at me with pleading eyes. I sighed and nodded.

"Great!" she said and pushed the box in my arms. "Could you go bring this to the art room? It's full of new paintbrushes."

I wrapped my arms around the box and frowned. "Why won't you do it?"

"I'm going to go around to ask people if they want to play hug tag during the free hour."

"What is a hug tag?" I asked.

"Promise to come play and you'll know."

I sighed. "Fine, okay. I promise."

I didn't necessarily want to go play one of Vilde's stupid games but I figured I should take one for the team and go there and drag the boys with me. For Magnus's sake. Of all the people Magnus had to fall for the one who always wanted to play some social games.

"Great!" she smiled. "See you later then, Isak."

She walked away and I sighed again, shaking my head. I walked to the art room, pushed the door open with my leg and then stopped in place.

Inside the room there was Even and Sonja, kissing.

I stared at them in a shock, the box dropping from my hands and hitting the floor loudly, all the paintbrushes spreading all over the floor.

They jumped apart and turned to look at me. Sonja looked confused but Even's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.

"Isak...", he said.

I shook my head, turned around and started running away.

"Isak, wait!" Even yelled after me.

I didn't listen.

I couldn't believe Even had kissed Sonja. I felt tempted to punch something again but my knuckles were already bruised from yesterday. For some reason I could feel tears behind my eyes but I kept blinking them away. I didn't want to cry. Not because of some stupid summer crush.

"Isak, wait!"

Even grabbed my arm and stopped me. I tried to pull my hand free but he wouldn't let go. He pulled me closer and tried to reach my eyes but I kept turning my head, trying my best to hide my teary eyes.

"Isak, look at me."

"No."

"Please, just look at me", Even pleaded. "Hear me out."

"You kissed her!" I yelled, finally meeting his eyes and he looked shocked when he saw my face. I didn't even want to know how awful I looked. "You said you wanted space and then you go and kiss her!"

He shook his head. "I didn't kiss her, Isak! She kissed me. Okay? I didn't kiss her. I would never do that to you, Isak."

I didn't reply because I didn't know what to say. I looked down and bit my lip. Was he lying? He didn't sound like he was lying. I had no idea what to say or do. I was afraid to open my mouth because I knew I would start crying if I did.

Even placed his thumb under my chin and lifted my head up, meeting my eyes. He placed his hand on my cheek and moved his thumb gently across my cheek.

"Okay?", he whispered. "I would never do that to you."

That's when the first tear escaped my eye. He caught it with his thumb and wiped it away.

"So, Isak is the one."

I jolted when I heard Sonja's voice. Even's hand dropped from my cheek as we turned to look at Sonja. I didn't know how to explain her facial expression. She didn't look exactly mad but the looked... hurt? Maybe? I had no idea, the women were a mystery for me. Maybe she was sad. Or angry. Or both. And maybe she would flip during the next few seconds but I didn't want to be there to witness it.

Before anyone could say another word, I took several steps back and then spun around, running away without looking back.

I ran towards our cabin, heart beating fast. Sonja knew. Sonja knew. Sonja knew. Sonja—What if she tells everyone, as a revenge? I wasn't sure if I could handle it. I wasn't sure if I could handle everyone knowing about me and Even. I wasn't sure if I was ready for that.

I reached our cabin and leaned my forehead against the door, breathing heavily. The door swung open and I stumbled inside.

"Isak?"

Eskild, Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus looked at me, frowning.

"Sonja—Sonja knows", I said between my breaths.

"WHAT?"

"Sonja knows. And I'm afraid she might tell everyone."


	21. Chapter 21

"Wait, what? Why would she tell everyone?" Jonas asked.

I spread my arms.

"I don't know!" I yelled. "Maybe she wants revenge."

"Or maybe she's mature enough to know that she can't just go around outing people to everyone", Jonas said.

I bit my lip. He had a point. Maybe, just maybe, Sonja was more mature than what I assumed. Maybe she wouldn't tell anyone. I took a deep breath and then breathed out slowly. I had to calm down a little.

"How'd she find out?" Magnus asked.

I proceed to tell them what I saw in the art room. Even and Sonja kissing. Although Even had said that Sonja kissed him, I had no idea what to believe and who had kissed who. I felt so lost. And hurt. Jonas could immediately see it.

"Isak?"

I sighed. "Even ran after me. He stopped me and said that he didn't kiss Sonja, she had kissed him. And he said that he would never do that to me."

"And?"

"And then Sonja appeared, she had heard everything and figured out the truth."

My friends were quiet for a moment but I couldn't be silent, not when I had still things to say, things that I couldn't keep inside of me anymore.

"I just don't know what to believe!" I groaned.

"Well", said Jonas, "did it look like he was kissing her?"

I thought about it. And thought about it. And... no. No, it didn't. Even had had his arms on his side, not wrapped around Sonja. He had had a surprised and shocked look on his face before I had dropped the box and made them aware of me being there. The more I thought about it the more it seemed like Even had told the truth; Sonja had kissed him out of the blue and he had been caught off guard.

"No", I finally sighed out loud. "It did not look like he was kissing her."

"And there you have it", Jonas said. "You overthink every time something happens, you know that, right?"

"Jonas has a point", said Mahdi.

"You should listen to him sometimes", said Eskild.

Magnus nodded in agreement and I rolled my eyes, finally moving from standing in the middle of the cabin to sit on my own bed. I sunk down on the bed and fell on my back.

"I have to overthink it. It's who I am."

"Can't you just... I don't know... trust Even?" Magnus asked.

I narrowed my eyes. "Trust? I can't trust him."

"Why not?"

I thought about everything that had happened. How he had been willing to cheat on his girlfriend because of me. How he had kissed me but then told me that he needs space. Then he went and talked and kissed with Sonja. Or Sonja kissed him but whatever. And let's not forget that thing that Sonja had said, about Even doing this to her again.

Yep, so there was that.

"Because he hasn't give me any reason to trust him", I muttered, rolling on my stomach and pressing my face against the mattress.

Jonas kicked my leg.

"Either way", he said. "You have to talk with him. Give him a chance to clear everything up. Things have gotten way too messy, too many loose ends. It's time to get some clarity to your situation."

"He wanted space. I'd talk to him if he would let me."

Jonas shrugged. "I think he is willing to talk with you now when Sonja found out, it makes the situation brand new."

"Jonas's right, y'know", Eskild echoed. "Have a real, long, mature talk with him."

"How?" I asked. "I'm not mature, I can't have a mature conversation."

They all sighed in unison and that's when someone knocked on our door and then it slid open. For a briefest moments I was afraid it would be Even or Sonja but lucky me it was just Vilde.

Magnus's whole face light up when she saw Vilde. They changed smiles and Mahdi, Jonas, Eskild and I changed knowing looks. Something was building up between them, I was sure of it.

Good for them.

"Hi, boys", she said, smiling widely. "The whole camp is going to play the hug tag now during the free hour. Wanna join?"

I closed my eyes briefly. I had completely forgotten the whole stupid hug tag—whatever that even was.

"Of course!" Magnus said without hesitation. "Right, guys?"

Jonas and Mahdi looked at each other before nodding. "Yeah, whatever."

Eskild clapped his hands excitedly.

"I love the hug tag!" he said. "I'm so in! Going to hug the shit out of y'all."

"Charming", I said.

"Isak, you're coming too, right?" Vilde asked, looking at me. "You promised."

Shit. I had promised. Before I could come up with an answer, my friends stepped in.

"You know, Vilde, he's not feeling well--"

"He's having kind of a situation right now--"

"Really think he should be alone for a bit--"

"But he promised!" Vilde said, pouting.

I lifted my hands up, making everyone quiet. Sure, I would have much rather stayed in the cabin, but I had promised and what was the worse that could happen? Sooner or later I would have to get out there and see if Sonja had told anyone. If she had then I could always ran back to the cabin to hide.

"I'm in", I said. "I'm fine, guys. I made a promise and I intend to keep it. So, I'm in."

Vilde jumped up and down excitedly. "Oh, this is going to be so fun!"

We laughed at her excitement and followed her out of the cabin. We walked to the field where usually the sports were held and there was already literally the whole camp. Apparently everyone were curious to play Vilde's game.

We stood in a large group and in front of us was Vilde, nervously wiggling her fingers but still that same excited smile on her face. I looked around, half expecting everyone to stare at me weirdly and call me out about stealing someone's boyfriend but no one looked at me. I sighed in relief; it seemed like Sonja hadn't told anyone.

"Alright, everyone!" Vilde yelled and we all stood there in silence, listening to her. "You're all here to play the hug tag. For those of you who don't know what is hug tag, let me fill you in. We choose a catcher, for example William here. He runs around and tries to touch you guys while you run away. If he touches you, you have to stop, spread your arms on your sides and wait for someone to rescue you. Others can rescue you by hugging you and then you can run again. We will switch the catcher when everyone's either caught or when the catcher is too tired to continue and wants to switch places.

"Because there's so many of us, we will choose eight catchers. That should make everything interesting. For the first round the supervisors will be the catchers. Everyone's still following?"

We mumbled yes and then some girl raised her hand. "How far can we run?"

Vilde smiled.

"I'm glad you asked", she said. "The area where we stay is from those trees to those rocks." She pointed at them. "And you shouldn't cross the borders, the island is too big for us to run after you around it. Stay inside the borders! It's going to be crowded and include a lot of running but it's also going to be fun, nevertheless!"

The supervisors moved to stand in a line with Vilde and they all smiled mischievously, rubbing their hands together.

"We supervisors will announce the eight first ones to get caught and those eight will become the catchers on the next round. ALSO, if you're just hugging someone, you can't get caught", Vilde said. "Now... LET'S PLAY!"

The supervisors started running towards us and every single one of us, all thirty-two campers started running away, some girls screaming. My friends and I got separated as we ran among the people, twisting and turning and dodging our supervisors. I saw a few people already standing their arms spread on side. I stopped in front of some girl and flashed her a quick smile before hugging her quickly and then we both started running on the different directions.

I hugged people who had been caught until suddenly Eskild hit me on my shoulder.

"Shit", I said. I stopped and spread my arms on the side, looking around. "JONAAAS, SAVE ME BABY!"

"ISAK!"

I truned my eyes to my left and saw Jonas running towards me, Eva right behind him.

"Run, run, run!" I yelled, getting tired to hold my arms up. Then Jonas crashed against me, wrapping his arms around me. He was panting and I laughed when Eva stopped next to us, glaring.

"Damn it!" she said.

"Keep going", I said, keeping my arms firmly wrapped around Jonas. "You can't touch us as long as we are hugging."

She narrowed her eyes and started walking away. "I will get you, guys."

Jonas and I laughed and once she was gone we looked at each other, nodded, took a deep breath and then let go of each other, starting running again.

I got Chris and William after me.

"Why are you both after me?!" I screamed over my shoulder and because of that I ran straight against someone and we both stumbled on the ground.

It was Even.

Chris and William stopped and looked at each other before turning their eyes on me again.

"That counts", William said.

"You're caught", Chris said.

Even stood up and offered his hand to me but I ignored it, getting up on my own and lifting my arms on my side. Even eyed me for a moment before backing up and jogging away.

Some random girl saved me by quickly hugging me but then I got caught immediately again as Ingrid slapped my shoulder as she ran past me.

"God damn it!" I groaned and lifted my arms up again. I looked around. It started to look like the supervisors were winning, there was so many people holding their arms up.

That's when I heard Vilde's voice over the noises.

"ALRIGHT EVERYONE!" she yelled and people stopped running. I dropped my arms down and walked closer. "Let's change the catchers! The first one I caught was Vera."

The other supervisors joined in, telling who had got caught.

"Markus."

"Klara."

"Rita."

"Noora."

"Joakim."

"Viggo."

"Hans."

"Alright", said Vilde. "You know your new catchers, RUN!"

We were all still out of breath but we didn't care, we started running anyway. This time it was more difficult because I had no idea who was Klara or Rita and I barely recognized Viggo and Markus and Vera. But it was fun, running and just trying to avoid touching anyone.

Soon enough I noticed who were the ones touching people so I learned to avoid them but eventually I got caught. Four times in a row and twice I was saved by some random girls and once by William and once by some random guy who I didn't know by name.

I was just about to run to save this short, blonde girl when Joakim slapped my shoulder and grinned. I narrowed my eyes at him and stopped, lifting my arms up.

I looked around and then suddenly Even was in front of me. We stared at each other until he wrapped his arms around me.

"Meet me at the beach after dinner", he whispered in my ear and then let go of me.

I breathed out and watched him run away. I guess I should have seen it coming. Of course he would want to talk with me now, he wanted to explain himself, I really, seriously should've seen it coming. But still it came as a surprise to me. However, I thought it was good. Like my friends had said, I should really have a mature conversation with him, even if I wasn't sure that I was capable of doing that.

We continued playing and switching catchers until the bell rang surprisingly soon. I hadn't even realised how fast the time had flew. I jogged to Jonas and slapped his shoulder.

"Hi."

"This was fun", he said.

I nodded.

"I saw Even hugging you", he commented. "Did he say something?"

I nodded again and we started walking towards Magnus, Mahdi and Eskild.

"He wants me to meet him at the beach after dinner."

"That's good. Talk it out."

"Yeah."

We stopped in front of Magnus, Mahdi and Eskild. They stopped their conversation and turned to look at us.

"Where next, boys?" Eskild asked.

"I'm going to sports", said Mahdi.

"Arts", said Magnus.

"I'm thinking of going in the kitchen", said Jonas.

I shrugged and looked at Eskild. "I guess I'll come with you, I wanna work on my chair."

We waved goodbye and went on our separate ways. Eskild and I walked to the woodworks and soon Joakim appeared there too. We talked about the hug tag and laughed with each other, having a good time. It was fun to chill with Eskild and my new friend, Joakim was cool and I liked him. I was hoping he would be at the camp next year too.

When Joakim left, I saw Noora, Sana, Emma and Sonja walking in. I stiffed and looked at their faces. Noora and Sana barely nodded at me and Emma didn't look at me at all. Sonja looked at Eskild.

"You can go now", she said. "I got this covered."

"Alright", Eskild said and glanced at me. I nodded at him, signaling I would be fine. Eskild left and I got up too, attempting to leave but Sonja grabbed my arm and made me tense up. I held my breath.

"Can we talk?"

I nodded hesitantly and she motioned me to follow her outside. I tried to breath calmly and keep my cool. What would she say?

"Look, Sonja--", I started, but she lift her hand up, making me shut my mouth.

"Do you think he likes you?" she asked but clearly didn't expect an answer. "He doesn't. He has done this before, y'know. Cheated me, then broke up with me and eventually crawled back to me when he got bored."

I swallowed, feeling something tighten around my heart.

"He didn't cheat you, it was just one kiss when you two were still together", I muttered but she didn't listen to me.

"You're not exception. You're not special", she said and pushed past me.

I stood there, completely in shock. Now I knew what she had meant when she had said that Even was doing this to her again. And it hurt. Sonja had said exactly what I had been afraid of. I felt like my heart beat had gone entirely missing and I couldn't breathe.

I ran to the kitchen but Jonas wasn't there. I tried to look for him but couldn't find my best friend. I tugged my hair in frustration and then went to our cabin, not giving a fuck about the fact that I should be doing something somewhere. I sat on my bed and I felt a tear rolling down my eye.

Why was I crying? Why was this so hard? Why did I react so hard to this?

I heard the bell rang and I got up, wiping my eyes.

Fuck this.

I got up and went to dining room, sitting on our table where all my friends already were.

Jonas eyed me. "Are you alright?"

I shook my head.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

I shook my head again. I kept my head down as we ate in silence, listening how other people were chatting happily in the dining room. I saw Even walking out of the dining room, glancing at me and nodding towards the beach. I turned to look at my friends.

"I'm gonna go", I said.

"To talk with Even?" Jonas asked.

"That. Or to end things with him", I muttered.

I had no idea what to do. I left before me friends could ask what did I mean by that.

I walked towards the beach and saw Even standing there on our spot. I stopped and stared at his back. The sun was shining and making him look so beautiful.

I realised how little I knew about him. I had no idea who he was. What kind of person he was. How could I trust him when I didn't know a single thing about him?

Then again how could I trust in Sonja's words? I didn't know her either. But why would she lie? She had been pretty convincing. Besides, everything added up, it made totally sense.

Maybe Even was just playing with me.

I walked up to him.

"You came", he said as he turned around to face me. "I'm glad."

"I'm here to tell you that Sonja told me everything", I said before I could change my mind. "That you're just a lying cheater and you don't really even like me, I was just some entertainment to you."

"What? No, Isak, that's not true! You have to let me explain this whole situation to you."

I took a deep breath and looked at him. "I'm done. I can't play this game anymore."

With that I turned around and walked away, eyes burning, heart beating and ignoring Even calling my name.


	22. Chapter 22

Next morning I woke up tired.

When I had got back to the cabin I had told my friends what had happened at the beach and told them that I didn't want to talk about it. I knew there was something that they wanted to say to me but I didn't want to hear it and they understood that so we all just ignored it, went to watch the movie, ate supper and then went to our beds.

My friends fell asleep annoyingly fast while I stayed awake, wallowing in self-pity. I knew I shouldn't wallow in self-pity but I couldn't help it. I had made the decision to end things with Even, to end our... whatever it was that we were having.

Things had moved on too fast. And I had got attached way too fast and it scared me.

"Isak, are you awake?"

I rolled on my back and looked at Jonas. "Unfortunately."

Jonas, Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild got up, looking well rested and wide awake. None of them looked sleepy or even slightly bothered by the fact that we had to get up and start our eleventh day on the camp.

But I on the other hand were sleepy, grumpy and not at all excited to get out of the bed. I listened how they talked happily with each other, planned excitedly what to do today and I couldn't bring myself to join the conversation or get even the slightest bit excited.

"We should get going", Eskild said. "We are going to be late from the breakfast."

I didn't want to go but as I realised that I had no other choice, I got out of the bed and pulled my clothes on.

"Stop frowning", Jonas said. "You'll get wrinkles."

"Fuck you", I said.

"Come on, Isak", Magnus sighed. "Cheer up."

"Yeah", Mahdi echoed. "Fuck Even, don't let him bring you down."

I wanted to say that it was too late for that but I decided it was better to just keep my mouth shut.

"They are right", Eskild said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "Don't let it ruin your summer camp, you only have this once in a year. Let's go have some fun."

I sighed. They were right. I needed to pull myself together and push Even out of my mind. It was over, anyway. Over before it even started.

We walked to the dining room and as we headed towards our table I noticed people staring and glancing at me, then whispering to each other. Everyone's eyes were on me when I got up to fetch my food and I felt very uncomfortable. Why was everyone staring and whispering? I had to check that I had clothes on. What was going on?

"Guys", I whispered, "I think I'm gonna go."

"What?"

"I don't feel comfortable, I have no idea what is going on with everybody", I said and got up. "Catch up with you later."

I put my dishes away and started walking out.

That's when I heard someone mentioning my name and Even's. I stiffed and looked behind, seeing Even staring at me worriedly.

They know, I realised.

Every one of them knows.

I spun around and ran out of the dining room, feeling the panic taking over me. What was I supposed to do now? Everybody knows about me and Even. My heart started beating harder and I couldn't breathe normally. I started to get scared I'd get a panic attack.

Once I was outside I stopped and leaned my hands against my knees, trying to breathe.

"Isak!"

Even ran next to me.

"Go away", I muttered.

"Are you okay?" he asked, trying to touch my shoulder. I dodged him.

"Don't touch me."

"Please, Isak—You have to let me talk! You shouldn't listen to them, just like you shouldn't listen to Sonja. You shouldn't trust her words. You know I want you. I truly like you. Please, just let me explain everything."

I pushed him away from me, needing some space to breathe.

"I can't do this right now!" I yelled, turned around and ran away. I went to the only place that popped in my mind through all the chaos; the beach. When I went there I was alone, everyone else were still having breakfast.

I knew it was against the rules to go rowing alone, especially if no one knew you were going and there was no supervisors at the beach but I didn't care. I pushed the boat off the shore and jumped in.

For five minutes I rowed angrily until I run out of power and I had to stop to rest my arms. I couldn't see the shore anymore, I was on the other side of the island.

I leaned my head on my hands and sighed, feeling uncomfortable and anxious.

How could Sonja do it? How could she just go around and tell everyone as if it was somehow acceptable?

"Fuck", I muttered.

I couldn't believe she would do something like that. Outing someone was never cool and I thought she knew better. Right now, at that moment, I truly felt like I hated her. I wasn't necessarily scared of what the people would say about me or think about me but it was the fact that I didn't know if I was ready for the whole camp to know about Even and I.

Granted, sooner or later it ought to happen but I wanted it to be later. And on my own terms.

What was I supposed to do next? As much as I wanted to go to Sonja and call her out of what she had done, I decided against it. It probably wouldn't be the smartest move at the moment. I lifted my head up and looked around, taking deep breaths. I had to calm down.

Maybe the smarted move would be to go back, find my friends and talk with them. It would make everything easier. I could handle this, especially if I have my friends beside me for support. I could face everyone and handle them knowing if I just had my friends.

I nodded at myself.

Yes, that's the plan. I started rowing back, now much slower and taking my time. I wasn't so eager to see other campers or supervisors but I had no choice. I had to talk with my friends, I couldn't do this on my own.

When the shore came back to my view I saw a few swimmers and one supervisors standing by. I got closer and recognized that it was Ingrid.

She looked angry.

I knew I was in trouble when I climbed out of the boat and she walked towards me, her lips pressed in a thin line.

"For God's sake, Isak!" she yelled once she reached me. "What on Earth were you thinking going rowing all by yourself without saying anything?"

"I--"

"Something could've happen!"

"Nothing happened, I'm fine", I said, moving my arms. "See? Completely healthy."

"But something could've happen!" she repeated. "You're an idiot, Isak. Did you know that?"

"I do now."

"Take that sassy ass of yours to Chef's and tell him what you've done", she said and I nodded because there was no point to argue. If I didn't tell Chef myself then Ingrid would and that would make Chef even more angry.

I walked to look for Chef and found him in his office. I knocked on the open door and he lifted his eyes up, looking at me.

"Isak", he said. "What brings you here?"

"Ingrid send me", I said and then told him what I had done. Chef glared at me disappointedly and shook his head. "I'm sorry."

"Oh, Isak", he said. "What has gotten into you?"

"Nothing, I'm fine", I said, avoiding his eyes.

"Clearly you're not. What's bothering you? Why did you do it?"

I sighed. "I just needed some space."

"I heard rumours going around--"

"Nope!" I exclaimed. "We are not going down on that road. Never."

"Alright, alright", he said and I sighed in relief. The last thing I wanted was to talk about my love life with Chef. Not would it only be awkward but it would also be extremely humiliating. "You do know I have to punish you, right?"

I nodded, my shoulders slumping.

"I'm about to go ring the bell right after you leave this room so after the lunch you'll use your free hour to clean up the boys' toilets. I want them spotless, got it?"

I grimaced and nodded. "Got it."

While I didn't fancy cleaning the toilets I had to admit that it could've been worse. I didn't exactly know how but I just knew it could.

I left the room and soon enough the bell rang. I took my time to walk in the dining room. I knew everyone would still be talking about me and Even and I really wanted to skip the whole lunch but I was starving.

My friends were already at our table when I arrived. They immediately shot me with questions about where was I and am I okay. Apparently they had figured out what was going on.

I told them where I had went and about my punishment and then said I would rather not talk about it anymore.

During the lunch I tried my best to ignore all the looks I received. I had no other choice, really. When I was done eating I nodded at my friends and left.

I knew where I could find the necessary tools for cleaning the toilets since Jonas and I had done it before, a few years ago when we had made Chef angry and he had ordered us to clean all the toilets and showers.

Rubbing the toilets clean was boring. Some music could've made it better but I didn't have my phone with me so I was stuck in silence. I was halfway done when the door opened and William walked in.

"Hi", he said.

I nodded at him.

"I thought I would find you here", William said.

"News travel fast", I muttered.

"I actually came to talk with you about... well, you know. I heard some rumours about you and Even."

"From who?" I asked, already knowing the answer would be Sonja.

"Noora told me. She had heard Emma telling about it to some girls."

My mouth dropped open and I stared at William in disbelief. Emma had spread the secret to everyone? And then I realised that shit, it just might be true. She probably heard me and Sonja talking about it outside the woodworks and then went on to tell everyone.

Shit.

And I had blamed Sonja.

I couldn't believe that I had been so wrong. How did I not see it coming? Well, Sonja was the obvious option but Emma had just as much reason to try to ruin my life. She probably hated me.

"Anyway", William said, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Figured I should tell you that all's good. No one has talked shit about you or anything. Just in case you were wondering... They all are just surprised but nothing has changed."

I didn't know what to say.

"Uh... Yeah. Okay—Good", I mumbled. "It's—We are not... It's complicated."

William smiled at me. "You don't have to explain to me. It's your private thing. Or was. Emma has quite a big mouth."

"Clearly", I said dryly.

William shrugged and waved goodbye. I leaned against the hard wall and breathed out.

It was Emma who had outed me?


	23. Chapter 23

The second I finished cleaning the toilets was also the second when the bell rang and free time was over. I had been wondering what to do with the fact that Emma had outed me to everyone. Should I confront her about it or just ignore the whole thing?

By the time I had put out the cleaning stuff and walked out of the building I had made up my mind and knew now what I needed to do; I had to talk with Emma, someone had to tell him that what she did hadn't been right and she can't just go around outing people because she wants revenge. Because that's what it had been, obviously. A revenge. But I had tried to apologize to her and she hadn't accepted it. She had no right to do what she had done.

I lurked around the stables, trying me best to avoid Sonja and see if Emma was there. She wasn't. I walked away and checked the music room and the beach but she wasn't there either.

Finally I found here in the art room. She was standing there, painting. Even's eyes landed on me when I stepped inside the room and they never left me when I walked straight up to Emma, ignoring Even. I had become quite good at it, unfortunately.

"What the fuck, Emma?" I said as I reached her, not giving a fuck who might hear us. I was so done with this shit and I just wanted to get things in order.

"What?" she asked as if she had no idea what I was talking about.

"Who gave you the right to out me to everyone?" I hissed. "You can't do shit like that!"

Now everyone was surely staring at us but I still couldn't give a single fuck. Not even when Even straightened up and stared at us, clearly listening. I didn't care that he would hear everything I was going to say, it didn't matter.

"You used me", she replied. "You let me understand that you liked me when in reality you were just trying to make Even jealous."

"I'm sorry for that", I said. "But I did tell you that I'm not interested quite soon before things could get serious so you can't really blame me!"

"But--"

"No buts!" I said and crossed my arms, staring at her. "You have to understand that it is not right to out someone, ever. Don't you understand how sensitive subject it could be to someone? Coming out should be everyone's own choice and happen on their own terms!"

"I—I...", she wiggled her fingers nervously. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I didn't think the girls would tell everyone. I'm sorry."

I took a deep breath. That was all I really wanted to hear. Sure, it still didn't make what she had done right but that's still all I wanted to hear. I didn't want to be on bad terms with anyone. A simple 'sorry' was what I wanted but I couldn't understand how she could be so stupid that she hadn't realised that maybe it wasn't right to tell everyone about me and Even. Sure, it wasn't right for us to kiss while he was still with Sonja but he had broke up with her and technically we hadn't done anything wrong.

Emma shouldn't have outed me—us, to everyone. She should have know better. It was called common sense, for fucks sake.

"Fine", I said.

"Are we even now?" she asked.

I thought me kissing her to make someone else jealous and she outing me were two completely different things and hell no were we even now but I wasn't feeling like arguing any longer. I just wanted to things be okay so, therefore, I decided to let it go and just roll with it. Me holding a grudge wouldn't change things.

"Sure, whatever, if it makes you happy", I muttered and attempted to leave, but she grabbed my arm.

"Look", she said. "For what it's worth, I'm happy for you and Even..."

I didn't really believe her, considering she was friends with Sonja but it was nice of her to say that. I glanced at Even who was already staring at me, hearing every single word. I turned my eyes back on Emma. "We're not together."

Then I pulled my arm free and walked away, without looking at Emma or Even again. I was fairly sure I wouldn't be able to handle the look on Even's face so I didn't want to look at him.

I needed my friends.

They were, however, nowhere to find. I walked around the island, trying to look for them for half an hour but they stayed missing. They were not swimming. Not doing their chairs or helping in the kitchen. Finally I gave up and decided to just go to the music room to clear my head. I knew I should go to arts and finish my painting and start the new one but I didn't want to because Even would be there. I would go when it was Vilde or someone else supervising there.

Maybe I was being a pussy but I didn't care.

I stopped at the music room's door and stared inside. Even was there, talking with Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas. My friends had their eyebrows furrowed and Even was explaining something to them. I backed away, I didn't want them to see me.

I wondered what they could possibly be talking about? I had no idea and I didn't want to speculate it too much either, it wouldn't help me. I walked away from the music room as fast as I could without breaking into a run.

I went in the kitchen since it was closest and saw Joakim.

"Hi", he said. "Wanna give me a hand?"

I nodded. This was just what I needed; a distraction. I started chopping vegetables and we talked casually until Joakim cleared his throat.

"Lots of rumours going around here right now", he said, trying to sound casual.

I sighed. "Please don't."

I really didn't want to talk about it anymore, especially with Joakim. We were having such a chill conversation and I liked him so I didn't need him to bring up Even, it would only make me moody and everything would just simply suck.

"Sorry, we don't have to talk about that."

"Thanks", I said. We smoothly changed the subject and before I even realised it, we were done and the cooks told us we should go. The clock was half past four and the bell rang.

We walked to the dining room among the other campers, waved goodbye and went to our own tables.

We started eating dinner.

My friends were eating quietly which I found rather weird. I looked at them. Now I was curious what had Even said to them. What could possibly make them shut their mouths for once? I wanted to know.

"I saw you guys talking with Even", I said with a low voice so no one outside of our table would hear. "What did he want?"

"Wait, when did that happen?" Eskild asked but got ignored.

Jonas put down his fork and turned to look at me. "You really should talk with Even. Let him explain everything."

I couldn't believe my ears. "You're suddenly on his side?"

Jonas sighed and shrugged.

"All I'm saying is that you should hear him out."

I turned my eyes on Magnus and Mahdi. "And do you agree with Jonas?"

They avoided my eyes.

"He has some things to say that you should hear..."

"Yes."

I stood up, frustrated, and left without a word because I didn't know what to say, I couldn't believe them.

I walked to our cabin number seven and sat on my bed, trying to understand what the fuck was going on.

What had Even told to Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus? They had been on my side and then suddenly they were defending Even and taking his side. What could he have possibly say to them? I wanted to find out, I really did. I wanted to talk with Even and make things right, clear everything up. Maybe I should, for once, listen what he has got to say instead of walking away but even I realised that I couldn't do that.

I had already walked away from him, making my intentions clear. I couldn't just swallow my words and go crawling back, asking for an explanation. I was too stubborn for that.

It really sucked to know what you should do but not be able to do it because you also know you're just a stubborn little bitch.

The door opened and Magnus, Mahdi and Jonas stepped inside, eyeing me warily. They gathered around me and I eyed them suspiciously.

"Where's Eskild?" I asked. He hadn't come with them and I kind of hoped he would've, I needed someone to be on my side and I had a feeling Eskild might have backed me up. Or what the fuck do I know? Knowing Eskild he would be the voice of reason and just piss me off. He would also probably be right which would in turn piss me off even more.

They shrugged in response to me and stared at me seriously.

"Look, Isak", said Jonas. "You should talk with Even."

"Or you don't have to talk", said Magnus. "You just have to shut your mouth for once in your life and let Even talk."

I narrowed my eyes.

"Yeah", said Mahdi. "What they said."

I knew they were right and I hated them for it. I couldn't do that, I just couldn't. I had made up my mind to ignore Even and forget about him and I couldn't listen to his words. What could he possibly say that would change the situation? Even though I was curious to find out, I ignored the feeling and just glared at my friends before turning my back to them and taking my phone out.

"If you won't let Even explain himself, you force us to do intervention", Jonas said.

"What could you possibly do, huh?" I asked without turning to look at them.

"You have no idea."

I had a bad feeling. I sat up and looked at them, dead serious, "Stay away from this. It's my life, it's my choice. You have no right to play cupid. This things is not yours to fix."

"You're not acting rationally!" Magnus groaned. "You haven't given Even a chance to explain himself!"

"What did he say to you?" I asked. "Tell me."

"You have to go listen to him in order to find out", said Jonas.

I narrowed my eyes. "He put you guys up to this, didn't he? God, why can't he take a hint? I don't want to talk with him. There's nothing he could say to fix things, I already know everything."

Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus groaned in unison and Jonas slapped my head.

"You don't know, that's the thing!" Jonas said. "You know nothing and if you'd only let Even talk to you--"

"No", I said. "Sonja told me all I needed to know."

"And you believed everything she said?" Mahdi asked.

I shrugged.

"Good job listening to his EX-GIRLFRIEND instead of him, Isak. You're so smart", Magnus said, his voice filled with sarcasm.

"Fuck you", I hissed.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" Jonas sighed.

I stood up angrily.

"I'm going to see the movie", I muttered and pushed past them and walked out of the cabin. I didn't really want to watch any movie but I also didn't want to continue our conversation. They were right, deep inside I knew that but I couldn't bring myself to be mature enough to admit that and swallow my stupid pride.

The movie that was rolling was The Expendables. I loved that movie, I never got tired of seeing Sylvester Stallone and Jason Statham kicking everyone's asses. And not to forget Jet Li. I hoped with all my heart I could be like them but sadly I had two left feet.

I sat alone in the back and watched the movie, biting my lip and trying to concentrate and forget everything that was going on.

It worked more or less and by the time the movie ended, I was much more calm and ready to face my friends again without slashing out.

The bell rang after the movie and me and everyone else who had been watching the movie started walking towards the dining room.

The silence in our table was uncomfortable while we ate supper. My friends were not talking, Eskild didn't dare to ask what was going on and I just avoided looking at them because they avoided looking at me, probably completely done with my shit.

I was first to leave the table and go to the kiosk. I bought chocolate and Coca-Cola and then walked towards our cabin. When I passed the toilets I saw Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus talking with Even. They shut their mouths when they saw me and we stared at each other for a moment before Even said, "Talk to you later", and walked away, glancing at me once. I bit my lip and turned my back to them, speed-walking to our cabin.

Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus did not follow me. I sat on my bed, staring at my feet, feeling strangely lonely in the small cabin.

I wanted my friends there but currently they were in the opposite team and I had no idea what to do, I was all alone. Even had stolen my friends from me and turned them against me.

Suddenly the door opened and Eskild walked inside.

"Oh, Isak", he said. "Are you okay?"

"No", I said. "Even has turned my friends against me."

Eskild sat down next to me.

"You know", he said, "I just talked with them."

"Please don't be on their side."

"Isak... You have to stop being such a child and--"

"And let Even explain himself, bla, bla, bla. I have heard this talk already", I said. "Thanks for nothing, Eskild."

"Do you like Even? Do you miss him?" Eskild asked out of nowhere. I stared at him, surprised. Why would he ask something like that? "Do you, Isak? Be honest with me."

I sighed.

"Yeah", I admitted. "I do."

"Then why won't you listen to him? Why do you do this to yourself?"

"Because...", I said and sighed, preparing myself to say the whole truth. "Because what if his words won't fix anything? I get my hopes up and then he crashes them back down."

"Listen, you little idiot", Eskild said. "He wants to talk with you. He wants to explain everything to you. He wants to make things right. He wants you. He's willing to do anything to fix things with you!"

"But what if he can't fix things?" I said.

"You'll never know if you don't give him a chance. It's really up to you. It's your choice whether you let him fix things or not. Right now you're only making your own life miserable."

Eskild got up and walked to his own bed. I lifted my knees up and hugged my legs. Eskild's point? Noted. But did it change anything? I had no idea.

Of course I wanted Even back. I wanted that more than anything. But it wouldn't happen because I am too scared to let him try to fix things, too scared that I would end up getting hurt again. Too scared that Sonja had been right and Even was just a lying cheater who never really liked me.

It would be better for me to just stay away from him and save what was left from my broken heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trust Jonas, Mahdi and Magnus. A big intervention coming. Isak just needs a little (read: big) push and he's going to get it. Stay tuned!


	24. Chapter 24

The tension that filled our table during the breakfast was unbearable. I squirmed uncomfortably when the silence just kept getting longer and longer when everyone were staring at their plates and eating, without looking at me. My friends eyed on each other from time to time but never me and I just knew they were planning on something and I wanted to know what it was. Not that I really believed they would ever tell me. But I wanted to know anyway.

"You're up to something", I finally said. I got no answer and I sighed because that's what I had been expecting, so no surprise there. "Fine, don't tell me."

I got up, put my dishes away and walked out of the dining room. I was happy that no one was staring or whispering about me anymore, everything had calmed down and I didn't get weird looks as I walked. It felt good that things were somewhat back to normal.

After wondering for a moment what to do I decided that I should go check if the art room was safe to enter. By safe I meant that if Even was there or not. I didn't want to go there if he was supervising. I was too scared he would try to talk with me. I had no idea what I should say to him if he did.

I made my way to the art room and peeked inside carefully.

There was Vilde, alone.

I sighed in relief and walked in, greeting her. She lifted her eyes up and looked at me, a wide smile spreading on his face.

"Hi, Isak", she said. "How's your painting coming along?"

I showed it to her. "It's almost done and then I can start doing that animal thing-y."

I had no idea what animal I should paint but I didn't have to worry about that yet, I still had my old painting to finish.

"Good, good!" she said, smiling brightly. "Well, get on with it, then!"

I started painting. The sky looked beautiful and I was rather proud. The bonfire and guitar player were a bit messy but I let it go. I had to finish it and I had done my best already, there wasn't really anything else I could do. The colours were beautiful, though.

It took a bit over half an hour but finally the painting was ready. I showed it to Vilde and she nodded approvingly.

"It's beautiful", she said. "You should be proud of yourself."

I laughed. "Trust me, I am."

"What animal do you think represents your personality the most?" Vilde asked when I took a new blank oil canvas and put it in front of me.

"I don't know", I said honestly.

"Okay", she said, "let's try another way around. What do you think is really beautiful? Something worth aiming for?"

I thought about it even though I already knew my answer. I had always thought that couples who are together for many years, like fifty or something, were incredible. The fact that you love someone so much you're willing to spend your whole freaking life with them. It's beautiful. It's something I would like to have one day. Spent the rest of my life with one person, happily. That was my goal. Was it weird for a seventeen years old to aim for that?

"Commitment", I said finally and Vilde nodded.

"Well", she said, "did you know that swans mate for life?"

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Swans usually just have one mate for their entire life and if their partner dies, the other can die of a broken heart", Vilde explained.

I stared at her with open mouth. "Seriously? I didn't know that. How did you know that?"

She shrugged. "I know a lot of random facts."

"But no, seriously, that is so beautiful", I said in awe. "Not just the swans but you knowing that stuff."

Vilde laughed. "So, what do you think, could you paint a swan or swans?"

I nodded excitedly. I really liked the idea. I already could see myself drawing two swans on the lake, their necks forming a heart shape. It would be a massive cliché but I loved the idea anyway.

"Good!" she said. "I let you to it."

She walked back to her chair and I turned my eyes on the canvas, wiggling a pencil in my fingers, biting my lip. Then I started drawing, feeling a good flow. More people kept coming inside but I ignored them as I concentrated on my painting. I had no idea what time it was and I didn't even really care, I was way too concentrated on drawing. It felt good to be so inspired that you had no idea what was going on around you. It was like being in entire different world; your own, private little bubble.

When my arm was too tired to continue I put the pencil down, waved goodbye to Vilde and headed to our cabin. I pulled on my swimming trunks and then went to the beach. I took just a quick swim because the lunch would start at any second. There was five other swimmers too but I didn't know them and I didn't feel like getting to know them either. I dived a few times and just enjoyed the water. It was really hot day, with the sun being high on the sky. Everything would have been even better if my friends had been there but since the situation between us was what it was I had no other choice but to try to enjoy everything on my own.

Ths year certainly was different from others. Not only because Even but because I had fought with Jonas which happened like... never. And then there was Emma and everything. This year had been a wild roller coaster and it wasn't going to end anytime soon.

I was changing back to my clothes in the cabin when the bell rang. I took a deep breath and prepared myself to see my weirdly acting friends. I walked in the dining room and saw my friends sitting at our table. I walked over to them and almost walked straight against Even who was walking to get food.

I didn't say a thing as I stepped past him and sat by the table. I wondered whether I should greet them or not but I couldn't make up my mind before Jonas said, "Can we talk?"

I sighed. "Okay."

"At the cabin, after lunch?"

I had a feeling they would talk about the same thing as yesterday but this was my change to try to get them on my side so I agreed. They nodded approvingly and then we started eating. Apparently Eskild couldn't take the silence anymore because he started babbling about the weather like an old person. It was hilarious at the beginning but then it got real annoying real fast when he wouldn't shut up and just kept babbling how there was only sun on the sky and no clouds and how we would probably get another storm soon.

"Eskild, please shut up!" I finally groaned.

He pouted and kept his mouth shut. I thanked him and we continued eating in silence.

After we were done eating, which was when almost everyone was out of the dining room, we put our dishes away and thanked the cooks and then headed towards our cabin. I was walking ahead while Magnus, Mahdi, Jonas and Eskild trailed behind me.

I stuffed my hands in my pockets and sighed. This camp was supposed to be stress free time. Boy, had I been wrong.

I stepped in front of our cabin and extended my hand to open the door. It revealed Even standing in the middle of our cabin. I immediately spun around, attempting to walk away but my friends pushed me hard and I stumbled backwards. They slammed the door shut and I steadied myself, running to the door. I couldn't open it, the lads were blocking it.

"Let me out!" I yelled, hitting the door with my fist.

"You're not coming out until you have listened what Even wants to say!" Jonas yelled.

"So you might as well stop hitting the door and shut your mouth!" yelled Magnus.

"Be nice!" yelled Eskild.

"What they said!" yelled Mahdi.

"Guys, I'm serious, let me out!" I yelled.

There was a brief silence before Jonas said through the door, "Sorry, no."

I sighed and leaned my head against the door. I heard Even move behind me and I turned around, looking at him. Was there anything I could do to avoid having this conversation? And as I stared at him, I realised that no, there wasn't.

"Alright, you win", I sighed and walked to my bed, sitting down. "Talk."

"Don't interrupt me", he warned and stepped closer, kneeling in front of me so that our eyes were on the same level. "I want you to listen to me very carefully, okay?"

I nodded. "Okay."

"I haven't cheated on Sonja before. I did break up with her once because I fell for another girl. I didn't want to be with Sonja while I had feelings for another girl so I broke up with her. However, it didn't work out and eventually Sonja and I got back together. For some reason she considers that cheating, which it wasn't.

"I never lied to you. I'm not a liar or a cheater. I really like you. The reason why I wanted to have some space was because I needed time to clear things out with Sonja so she would understand and wouldn't freak out and cause trouble—which she did, anyway.

"And I never cheated on you. She kissed me out of the blue and as I said, I'd never do that to you because I really do like you, Isak. More than you can even imagine. I never wanted to hurt you."

He closed his mouth and looked me deep in the eyes. I was biting my lip and holding my breath. That was a lot to take in but one thing was clear; he was being sincere.

I had misjudged the whole fucking situation and made rushed decisions. I should have just take a deep breath and let him explain things to me in the first place instead of overreacting and running away like an idiotic little brat.

I realised now how stupid I had been. How childish and irrational. He had done nothing wrong, quite the opposite. He had tried to make things go as smoothly as possible and do the right thing. He had tried to make things so that Sonja wouldn't get hurt and everything would move on as painlessly as possible.

I couldn't believe I had been so stupid that I had actually believed Sonja when she had said that Even doesn't really like me. She had been hurt and probably wasn't thinking straight. I should have known better.

"Please say something", he whispered.

I plunged forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, pressing our lips together. He fell on his back and I fell on top of him, kissing the hell out of him. He wrapped his arms around my body and held me tightly, kissing back.

His lips were so soft and I hadn't even realised how much I had missed them until the moment I could bite his lip and make him open his mouth so that I could slip my tongue in.

There was a knock on the door.

"So... can we open the door now?" Eskild's voice asked and I started laughing, pressing my head against Even's chest. Since I was lying on top of Even I could feel my whole body moving when he started laughing too. God, I had missed his laugh.

I couldn't believe that I had been so stupid and childish. I could've had him all to myself all along if I had been just a little bit smarter and not overreact to everything.

My friends had been right all along. Damn it.

"Yeah, we're all good", Even called out. "Aren't we?"

I lifted my head up and looked him deep in the eyes.

"Yeah", I breathed out. "We are all good." I kissed him quickly. "And I'm sorry. For everything."

Even smiled and pulled me into another kiss.


	25. Chapter 25

I motioned towards the cabin's door.

"Should we go?" I asked.

It's not that I wanted to go, I wanted to tackle him to my bed and cuddle him until we both fell asleep but I couldn't do that, not when I knew that my friends were outside of the cabin waiting for us to come out.

Even took a hold of my hand and pulled me closer.

"Can't we just stay here and cuddle like... forever?" he asked. I started smiling like an idiot and I couldn't stop it, no matter how hard I tried. I shook my head.

"We should go. I think my so called friends have listened every word we have said and I think I owe them a thank you."

"Okay", Even sighed. "But you owe me a cuddle."

We walked to the door and he opened it. Jonas, Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild were standing right in front of us and started clapping their hands as we stepped outside. Magnus whistled and I blushed, gripping Even's hand tighter. Why did I have so embarrassing friends?

Even, however just laughed and apparently decided to but on a show because he yanked me closer and kissed me, then leaned our foreheads together and I could see him smile happily.

"Boo! You guys are disgusting", Magnus called out.

"Jealous much?" Even asked, turning to look at him.

Magnus swung his arm dismissively and we all laughed.

"Guys", I said. "Thank you."

Jonas smiled widely and patted my shoulder. "Our pleasure. You know, sometimes you're such a child and need a huge push before you can see how things really are."

"Just be happy that Even was just as stubborn as you and came to talk to us and didn't give up on your childish ass", said Magnus.

"Thanks guys", I muttered and rolled my eyes, looking at Even. "Thanks for not giving up on me even though I acted so childishly."

Even just shook his head and kissed my forehead.

"I'm getting jealous over here", Eskild groaned. "Keep down the PDA, please."

I grinned and jumped on Eskild, wrapping my arms around him. "I still love you."

"You better!" Eskild laughed and hugged me back.

The bell rang and our free hour ended just like that. Even walked me and the boys to the woodworks and kissed me goodbye.

"I can't get enough of you", he whispered, leaning our foreheads together. I blushed and he took a step back to look at my face. "You're cute when you blush."

I looked down and smiled. "Oi, shut up."

"Come on, lovebirds!" Mahdi yelled from inside.

Even sighed. "See you later."

"Bye", I said and let go of his hand as he walked away. I looked after him until he disappeared behind the corner and then I stepped inside, sitting next to Jonas.

"I know this might not be the best time for this", Jonas said, "but I told you so!"

"I know, I know", I sighed.

"You should've listened to me right from the start."

"I know."

"Who's your daddy?"

"ALRIGHT, shut up already!" I yelled and laughed. Jonas grinned and pointed at Mahdi.

"He had his doubts about our plan to lock you guys in the cabin", Jonas said. "Admit that it worked out better than what we had expected, Mahdi."

"It did", Mahdi said, nodding.

I smiled. God, I literally had the best friends in the world. No one could ask for better friends. They acted when I was too blind, too stubborn and too childish for my own good. Without them I probably would have left the camp without letting Even the chance to explain himself and then I would have regretted it the rest of my life. I shivered at the mere thought. I really should start thinking things through and contain my emotions a little bit and not act on them immediately. I was so glad Even got the chance to explain himself to me. I owed one to my friends.

"Okay, lads. Let's get down to business", Eskild said, rubbing his hands together.

We started working on our chairs, listening how the birds sang outside. The sunlight came in from the windows and open door and warmed us.

Jonas wiped his forehead after a while. "I really need to go to swim."

"Agreed", said Mahdi and Magnus.

I stood up, putting away my chair. "I'm going to the art room."

"So this is what it's going to be like now? You following him around like a lost puppy?" Jonas said as we stepped outside and waved goodbye to Eskild.

I wanted to say that no, of course not, but that would have been a lie. I just really wanted to spent as much time with him as possible. We had been apart for days and I wanted to get the time we had lost back.

I waved at my friends as they walked towards our cabin and then got inside the art room.

There were a few other campers too but no one paid any attention to me as I walked in and headed towards Even who was painting with a concentrated look on his face.

I smiled and sneaked behind him.

"Hi", I whispered.

He jumped and turned around, looking at me with wide eyes.

"Jesus!" he breathed out.

I grinned. "No, it's just me, Isak."

"Funny."

"Whatcha doing?" I asked, trying to peek over his shoulder.

He turned me around and pushed me to move away from his painting.

"None of your business", he said. "It's a surprise."

I laughed. "When can I see it?"

"When it's ready."

"Okay." I turned around and kissed him out of the blue. "Come, I have to show you something."

I pulled him towards the back of the room where all the ready paintings were. I saw mine and pointed at it.

"Look", I said. "I finished it."

He stepped closer and leaned in to look at it. I bit my lip nervously and waited for him to say something. Finally he straightened up and turned to look at me.

"It's beautiful", he said and smiled. "You did well."

I sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"I see you've started painting swans."

"How did you know?" I asked, looking at where the still not ready paintings were.

"I recognize your style."

"Oh."

He stepped closer and touched my arm. "I'm so happy everything is okay now."

I smiled but then realised that no, everything was not okay. I felt like we still had unfinished business with Sonja.

"Actually", I said and Even frowned, "i think we should talk with Sonja. Clear things up with her once and for all."

"Is that what you want?"

I nodded.

"Okay then", Even said. "We can go together after the dinner."

I nodded and took his hand in mine. He smiled and stepped closer. I didn't even bother to check if there was people staring at us. I didn't care. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him. He kissed back and gently bit my lip. I smiled into the kiss.

"No PDA!" someone yelled and we pulled apart and laughed. Even pushed me towards my painting and told me to get to work.

I smiled like an idiot as I fetched my swan painting and started working on it.

From time to time I asked for some advices from Even but mainly I worked in silence, just enjoying the good feeling I had. Things between me and Even were okay, Emma and I had cleared things up and soon we would clear things up with Sonja. Everything seemed to fall in place.

I felt happy.

The bell rang and everyone cleared the room and headed towards the dining room. Even and I walked together and he quickly squeezed my hand before we walked to our separate tables.

During the dinner Even and I kept glancing at each other and when I blushed after getting caught of staring at him, he raised his eyebrows and smirked. I turned my eyes away and hid my smile.

"Isak, you're pathetic", Jonas said.

"Screw you", I replied. "What are we talking about?"

"About tonight's movie", said Eskild. "Want to come watch it with us?"

I shook my head. "No, but you guys can go."

"You just want the cabin empty so that you and Even can be there alone", said Magnus.

I shrugged. "Maybe."

They rolled their eyes and I just smiled stupidly. Was it so wrong that I wanted to spent time alone with Even? Sure, we had to go and talk with Sonja first but after that I wanted nothing more than to give Even the cuddles that I owed to him.

After dinner Even and I teamed up and started walking towards the stables.

"Are you sure she's there?" I asked.

Even nodded. "She's feeding the horses."

We walked and the closer we got the more nervous I became. I had no idea what to say to Sonja and how she would react. Would she freak out? As the stables popped into my view I decided to just take it easy and see what happens. Just go with the flow.

I followed Even inside the stables and then we saw Sonja, just about to feed some horse which I didn't recognize. She stopped when she saw us and hesitated for a moment before walking over to us.

"Hi", she said once she reached us. She eyed us suspiciously and I bet she was nervous about what was coming. She wasn't the only one, I was nervous too.

"Sonja", Even said, "we wanted you to know that we are together, Isak and I."

"Aha. I kind of figured that out on my own."

"And I never meant to hurt you", Even continued. "But you owe an apology to Isak."

I wiggled my fingers nervously. "You don't have to--"

"No, she does. What she said to you is not okay", Even demanded. "Isak, you are special."

I blushed. I hated when I blushed but lately it was all I did and I couldn't control it. God damn it.

Sonja turned her eyes on me and she sighed.

"Look. I can't say that I'm exactly happy about this situation or that I'm happy for you guys but Even's right. I do owe you an apology, Isak." She shrugged. "I'm sorry. I was mad and hurt. I had no right to say those things and make Even look bad. I overreacted."

I nodded at her and said, "I'm sorry."

"For what? Falling for my boyfriend?"

"Ex-boyfriend", Even said.

"Isak, you can't help who you fall for", Sonja continued, ignoring Even. "I can't blame you. Either of you. I just hope you guys are happy together." She started backing away. "I have work to do so..."

We nodded and she walked away. Even pulled my arm and we started walking away in silence until Even laughed.

"What's so funny?" I asked curiously.

"She kind of gave us her blessing", he replied. "Kind of being the key word."

"Oh, my God", I said. "You're right! That's weird."

"Totally weird."

"But it went well. Better than what I expected. She acted very maturely now." Even wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "Things are starting to work out. You and Emma cleared things up, Sonja is not going on a killing spree... Everything is starting to look good for us."

I smiled and leaned closer to Even. "Yeah. And guess what?"

He smiled. "What?"

"You're going to get the cuddles that I owe you when we get back to my cabin."

Even laughed and pulled me into a kiss.


	26. Chapter 26

We walked back to the cabin number seven which was empty because everyone was watching the movie as I knew they would be. Not that I had planned this all inside my head but yes, I had totally planned this all inside my head. I smirked and pulled Even inside the cabin.

"See? It's all ours", I said and pulled him towards my bed. "What would you like to do?"

He raised his eyebrows and leaned closer to me. "Oh, lots of things." He's eyes travelled up and down on my body. "But for now I just want to hold you close. I've missed you and it's been a very long day."

I blushed and lowered my gaze down. Even pushed me on the bed and climbed next to me. He was surprisingly agile given the fact that he was basically a giraffe. I wasn't so short either but he was a freaking giant. I cuddled up to him and pressed my head against his chest, wrapping my arm around his waist.

We stayed there for a good while, neither of us saying a word. I listened his calm heartbeats and enjoyed the way his fingers were drawing patterns on my back, calmly and gently. I wanted to stay like that forever and of course just then I realised something that made me frown and pout childishly.

"There's only nine days left of this camp", I muttered out loud.

"So?" Even asked.

"What happens after the camp ends and we all leave? What happens after that? To us?" I asked.

Even pushed me away and sat up, looking me deep in the eye.

"We visit each other", he said simply. "This isn't just some summer romance, Isak. Not after all we've been through."

I smiled and then bit my lip. "Yeah. I... I kind of... told my mother about you already, so..."

"Oh, really?"

I nodded. "Really. Would you... like to meet them? My parents. You know, when they come here on the last day?"

Even leaned in and pressed a soft and gentle kiss on my lips.

"I'd love to", he said.

I started smiling like an idiot and blushed like a little kid.

"You're cute."

I slapped Even's arm. "Don't call me cute. I'm handsome."

"You're cute", he grinned.

"Am not!" I realised how childish I sounded so I groaned. "Seriously, why do you like me?"

Even looked surprised. He raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Where's this coming from?"

"I'm such a kid. Why on earth would you like me? I don't get it."

"Because you're cute", Even said. "You're funny, smart, special, interesting, kind..."

"Go on", I said, smirking. It was rather flattering to hear him talk like that and I didn't mind at all listening his words. Also I really liked his voice, so there was that.

"You're also a good kisser", he laughed and took my hand and held it, playing with my fingers. "And I just want you to be happy."

I smiled. "I am happy."

"Good." He kissed me and then his eyes dropped on my bruised knuckles. "What happened?"

"I got mad", I said. "And sad."

"Hope it wasn't a person who your fist hit."

"Nope", I laughed. "It's all water under the bridge, babe."

Even nodded and kissed gently my knuckles and that's when the door opened and my friends walked inside. We turned to look at them and Even sighed in disappointment, his hand dropping from my hair.

"What's up, lovebirds?" Eskild asked.

"You're interrupting", I said, pouting. They just shrugged and went to their beds. I leaned against Even and looked at my friends. "Was the movie good?"

"Average", Magnus said and the others nodded in agreement.

Even nudged me a bit. "Love, I have to go. I have kids to supervise."

"No", I said and refused to move.

My friends rolled their eyes and Even chuckled.

"Come on", he said and pushed me gently away from him. I groaned and stood up, following Even to the door. He turned around and leaned really close to me. I closed the small gap between our lips and smiled into the kiss. Even pulled away, raised his eyebrows at me and waved goodbye to my friends before walking away.

I sighed and leaned against the doorframe, staring at his back as he walked until I suddenly remembered my friends. I turned around and looked at their faces.

"What?"

"Boiiiii, you're so whipped", said Magnus.

"It's cute", said Jonas.

"Disgusting is what it is."

"Give him a break, lads", Eskild laughed and wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

"Yeah", I echoed. "Give me a break. I have to tell you guys something."

"What is it?" Jonas asked.

"It's about Sonja."

I proceed to tell them what had happened with Sonja before we came back to the cabin and Jonas, Mahdi, Magnus and Eskild listened in silence. After I stopped talking they remained silent for a good few minutes until Jonas finally said, "Well then."

"She kind of gave us her blessing, right?" I asked, sitting on my bed.

"Well, kind of", said Eskild. "Either way it doesn't matter if she gave her blessing or not, right?"

"Right."

It didn't but it would be nice to know that she wasn't hating us. But when I thought about it, I honestly didn't believe that she actually hates us. Maybe she's just disappointed and sad but she had been pretty cool when we had talked with her.

"How about we go eat supper, yeah?" Mahdi suggested out of nowhere. "I'm starving."

We all agreed so we got up and walked out of the cabin. It started raining when we were halfway there so we started running and laughing as the rain drops hit our faces. We stepped into the dining room which was already full of people. I figured we were the last ones to arrive.

Eskild lead us to our table and I saw Even winking at me as I sat down on my usual seat. I smiled and looked down shyly.

Everything went like every day; Even's table got up first and got their food, then it was our turn and then the others'. We sat in our table, ate and talked and laughed, just like always. I couldn't believe that we had only nine days left of this camp. Where did the time go?

"Hi, guys."

I lifted my eyes up when I heard Even's voice and looked at him.

"I'm here to remind you, Eskild, about that supervisor meeting we're having after supper", Even said and winked at me.

I looked down and smiled. Why did he have to have such a major effect on me? Why did he have to do all those things like rising his eyebrows and winking? I liked it too much and it had way too big effect on me. I needed to chill a little.

"Oh, right!" Eskild said. "Almost forgot that. Thanks, Even."

"No problem", he said, then he out of nowhere leaned in and kissed me. I did not expect that. He pulled back, laughing, when everyone in the dining room started yelling that we should get a room.

"See ya later", he said and walked away. I was red like a fire truck and looked at my plate, feeling how my cheeks and ears were burning.

"Isak, what's the colour of a tomato?" Eskild asked.

"Oi, shut up", I mumbled but couldn't help but smile. I hid my face behind my hands, I didn't dare to look around if people were staring. At least I didn't hear anyone talking or whispering. Not that I cared but I probably looked like a real life human tomato and it was embarrassing.

Eskild clapped his hands and stood up. "Okay, I think I'll go now, don't wanna be late. Behave yourselves, guys."

"Always", my friends replied in unison and I nodded in agreement. Eskild laughed and walked away. My friends turned to me.

"Red cheeks suit you", they said in unison.

I showed them my middle finger but smiled anyway because... Well.

Everything was okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only few more chapters to go! Maybe one, maybe two... who knows?


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LAST CHAPTER!!!!!

The rest of the days at the Holly Camp went really fast. It was almost scary and a lot of things happened during those days. I smiled at the memories and sighed.

We had caught William and Noora snogging, again. Though when we asked if they are dating they both denied it but rumour has it they changed phone numbers so I was pretty sure that if they weren't dating already, they would be soon. They were already kissing each other so.

Speaking of relationships, Vilde still hasn't warmed up to Magnus, no matter how hard Magnus has tried. They have spent time together but nothing has happened between the two of them. Magnus is running out of time and I could tell he is stressed. I get it, I'd be too if I were him.

Jonas, on the other hand, has been chilling with Eva more and more. I didn't know what their status is but according to Jonas they are just friends, they had realised they were better off as friends. They wanted too different things and that's why they couldn't date. They had tried once and apparently that was enough for them. But I was happy they were friends.

And since we are on the topic "friends" let me tell you something about Eskild. He caught me and Even in bed, half naked, one day. It was awful. It was so embarrassing and everything was just a mess when we all three panicked and Eskild was screaming and covering his eyes.

When I think about it now I find it rather hilarious. Maybe we should have but a sock on the door knob or something like that.

I sighed again and shook my head. Enough about the memories, I thought and sat up. I took my towel and walked out of the cabin, bare feet. I enjoyed the wet grass under my feet and walked to the showers.

I took my sweet time under to hot water before I finally got out of there, wrapped the towel around my waist and walked back to the cabin, carrying my clothes on my hands.

The second I stepped inside our cabin, Eskild's alarm clock started beeping and I heard all my friends groaning and starting to roll in their beds.

"Good morning", I said. "It's our last day on the camp!"

"O shit!" Eskild said and jumped up. "Your parents are coming today!"

I nodded.

"Shit, I have to look good. Bye, I'm off to shower!"

"Why do you have to look good?" I asked but Eskild didn't answer because he was already halfway out of the door. I rolled my eyes and sat on my bed. "Wakey, wakey, guys!"

"Why are you so energetic?" Jonas mumbled from under his bed sheets.

I shrugged even though he couldn't see me. "I have already showered."

"That explains it", said Magnus, jumping out of his bed. "Okay lads, this is it. The last day. My last chance with Vilde. Any ideas what I should do or say?"

"Just straight up tell her about your feelings", I suggested.

"I can't do that!" Magnus yelled. "She will laugh at me."

"Or she will be very moved and wants to kiss the hell out of you", said Mahdi, his head peeking from under the bed sheets.

"It's a fifty-fifty chance, really", said Jonas.

I nodded in agreement and Magnus groaned. I pulled on my clothes and hanged my towel to dry on the nail that was on the wall. I was excited. And okay, maybe a little bit sad that it was our final day but I was more excited than sad.

My parents would come, Even would meet them and I get to do my rap solo. We had been practicing so hard the last couple of days that I could do it in my sleep. Also, Even helped me with the lyrics so they really rock.

I waited that Eskild got back and got dressed until I suggested the breakfast.

The dining room was already full of people, everybody chatting excitedly and yelling to other tables.

We sat on our table and I locked eyes with Even. He smiled at me and I smiled back, wider than I what I care to admit.

Chef clapped his hands and everyone went quiet. He stood up and cleared his throat.

"Good morning, guys", he said. "A little bit about today's schedule. We will eat breakfast, then you guys can go to the pier to wait for the ferry which will bring your parents here. When everyone's here we will gather in this room, eat lunch and then you guys can give your parents a tour around the island, show them your works and make them ride a horse and go to swim. In the evening we will have a bonfire near the stage which the supervisors built on the shore. You will do your performance and then after that you can pack your stuff and leave with your parents. Don't forget to come again next year!"

Everyone laughed and clapped and Chef bowed before sitting down. We fetched our foods one by one and started eating. A nervous atmosphere filled the room. I understood why people were nervous. It was the first time in the camp's history that we had a last day performance. Everyone's parents would be there and we all wanted it to go perfectly.

When I was done eating I got up. Even got up at the same time and as we put away our dishes I asked him, "Are you coming to the pier with us?"

He shook his head. "Supervisors have to fetch more tables in the dining room so the parents will have enough seats to sit."

"Oh."

He kissed me. My heart missed a beat. Yep, it still did that. I blushed slightly and looked down.

"But", he continued lifting my head up, "I will come after we are done, okay? I'm excited to meet your parents."

I smiled and nodded. "Okay."

"Okay."

"O--"

"Don't go all Hazel Grace on me, Isak", Even warned and I snapped my mouth shut. "'Okay' is not our thing."

I tilted my head and stepped aside, giving room for other people to put away their dishes. "And what is our thing?"

Even tilted his head too and raised his eyebrows. "Our thing is that I do whatever and you blush at it."

I slapped his arm and he laughed, giving me a kiss on the cheek before walking away. I glared after him, feeling how my cheeks were reddening every second. People were glancing at me and shaking their heads amusedly. I flipped them off and walked to our table. I ordered my friends to eat faster so that they could come with me.

"Chill, we have lots of time", said Jonas.

I sighed and crossed my arms. I glared at them until they gave up and went to put away their dishes. I smiled happily as we were walking to the pier among other campers who were all just as excited as I was.

We sat on the ground and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

We talked, someone had brought a guitar and we sang and we laughed and we waited a little bit more. Finally we saw the ferry coming towards the island.

Everybody got up and stared, trying to recognize the faces.

"Wooo, I see me mum!" Magnus said, pointing at them.

I narrowed my eyes and finally recognized them. "I don't think my parents are in this ferry. They will probably come in the next one."

The ferry hit the pier and all the parents got out. Campers were running towards their parents and hugging them. Magnus disappeared for a moment and came soon back with his mother.

"Hi, boys!" she said, hugging each and every one of us.

"Hi!" Jonas, Mahdi and I replied in unison.

Magnus pulled his mothers arm. "Come, mum, let's go to the dining room so that people who are yet to come have more space here."

We waved at them as they walked away. Everyone who's parents had come started slowly walk towards the dining room and only the ones whose parents hadn't come yet stayed at the pier.

On the next round came Jonas's mum and dad, and on the third one came Mahdi's dad. At this point I had two thoughts; one, how fucking small is that ferry? And two, what if my parents had forgot again?

I waited nervously when the ferry went away to pick up the remaining parents from the opposite pier. It felt like a forever but finally the ferry hit the island's pier again and the parents came out of the ferry.

I spotted immediately my mum and dad. I waved at them and they walked over. I hugged them.

"Welcome!" I said. "I was afraid you had forgot."

"Jeez, Isak, it was just that one time!" my dad sighed.

"You'll never let us forget that, am I right?" my mum asked.

I shook my head. "Never. I will remind you every year for the rest of your lives."

"Fantastic", Dad sighed and patted my shoulder.

"Isak!" I heard Even yelling. I turned around and saw him jogging towards us. I started smiling and bit my lip, trying to contain my fond.

He stopped next to us and wrapped one arm around my shoulder and offered the other to my dad and mum.

"Hi, I'm Even", he said, smiling widely.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Even!", Mum said, shaking his hand and smiling widely. "Isak told us about you."

"All good things, I hope", Even laughed and shook hands with my dad.

"Of course", Mum laughed too.

"We should get going", I said when I realised we were the last ones standing by the pier. "We are about to eat lunch soon."

"Lead the way", Dad said and gave me a gentle push. I nodded and we started walking together back. Even and I walked in the front and my parents were walking behind us, talking about how beautiful the island was and how it had changed since the last time they had visited it.

Even leaned closer to me.

"They seem nice", he whispered.

"They like you", I whispered back. His whole face lit up.

"You think so?" he asked.

I grinned and nodded. "Of course. Who wouldn't like you? I mean, look at you. You're like a fucking sun."

"I'm flattered", Even laughed and looked like a sun, just like I had said.

We entered the dining room. There was extra tables and people were not sitting on their own places, they had all kind of spread everywhere, sitting wherever they liked. We all sat in the table with Jonas and his parents. My and Jonas's parents started chatting with each other so Even, Jonas and I just leaned our elbows on the table and listened their conversation, waiting for Chef to come and start his 'Welcome to Holly Camp' - speech.

It took awhile but finally everyone went quiet and we saw Chef standing in front us, smiling widely.

"Welcome, parents!" he said loudly. "Another three weeks has passed in Holly Camp. It's been a wild ride and I'm sad that it has to end today. About today's schedule. After lunch your kids will give you a tour around the island and show you what we have been up the last three weeks.

"Around four we have dinner and then in the evening we have a bonfire and little show which your kids have made just for you! After that it's time to pack and say your goodbyes. But now, let's eat!"

Everyone clapped and then we fetched our food and chatter filled the room. We ate and talked with each other, laughing. Even pressed his leg against mine and I glanced at him, smiling. He winked at me.

After lunch Even left us and I took my parents around the island, showing them my two paintings, what we had done in the woodworks and then lastly we went to the stables, where my dad rode a horse. Mum was too scared to try.

The time flew so fast and before I even knew it, we had ate dinner and chatted with almost every other camper and their parents and walked around the island. I had showed my parents how I had learned to use a bow and arrows, how I had learned to play a piano and so much more.

My parents were proud of me and I could see how happy they were that I had had fun. And got a boyfriend.

They spend a good thirty minutes talking with Even, asking him everything and making sure that he was a good lad. It was kind of embarrassing but Even handled it so well and I could tell that my parents loved him.

When the evening came, we lead our parents to the shore and they sat down by the bonfire and stared at our stage. We walked to the stage and Joakim went behind the drums, William and Noora took the guitars and everyone got to their places.

And then we started playing.

People sang and everything went perfectly.

"The sun goes down,

the stars come out,

and all that counts,

is here and now.

My universe will never be the same,

I'm glad you came..."

We sang and sang and I was nervous when my solo part finally came but when I opened my mouth I forgot all the nervousness and the words just poured out of my mouth and everything went smoothly.

When the performance ended we all bowed as our parents clapped loudly and cheered. I felt Even's hand in mine and we run out of the stage along with everyone else.

While the others joined our parents, Even and I ran behind the stage and walked the rest of the way to the shore and sat on our spot.

"You were amazing!" Even said as I leaned my head on his shoulder and watched the sunset.

"Thank you", I replied. "You helped me a lot with the lyrics."

"But you sang amazingly!"

I laughed and nudged his shoulder. "Stop it."

He laughed and then we sat in a silence for quite a while, just watching the sunset and listening the water hitting the shore.

Suddenly Even turned to look at me. "I have to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"I...I lo--"

"Vilde, let me explain!"

Even snapped his mouth shut and we turned to look at Magnus who was running after Vilde who was walking towards the sauna, looking angry.

"What? You accidentally touched my butt?" Vilde asked, stopping and turning to glare at Magnus.

"YES!" Magnus yelled. "I tripped. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--"

"Save it."

"Vilde, please! I—I'm crazy about you! You're all I can think of! I have been crushing on you for two years and I would never disrespect you like that!" Magnus pleaded.

Vilde was quiet for a good moment until she suddenly leaped forward and kissed Magnus. My and Even's mouths dropped open and we couldn't believe our eyes.

They kept kissing and backed away behind the sauna so we couldn't see them anymore. I turned my gaze on Even.

"What the fuck was that?"

"I can't believe it!" Even laughed. "He got the girl!"

We laughed and then I remembered that Even had intended to say something to me.

"What was it that you wanted to tell me?" I asked, looking at him curiously.

He shook his head. "No. Nothing. The moment passed."

"Come on, tell me!"

He stared at me silently and then he said, "I love you, Isak."

I wasn't shocked. I wasn't surprised. I was happy. I was beyond happy. Because I felt the exact same way.

I kissed him, my heart skipping a beat. I leaned our foreheads together. "I love you too."

Even started smiling and pressed our lips back together, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close. I wrapped my arms around him and pressed my face against his neck, holding him for dear life.

And I never wanted to let go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU for reading, commenting and leaving kudos to this story. It means the world to me that you have enjoyed this story. Thank you thank you thank you! xx All the love.


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